Stephen Amell has already played a hooded vigilante, a wrestler and plenty of square-jawed tough guys, but he's about to embark on his next new TV era, which unfortunately won’t arrive on the 2026 TV schedule. His next big small-screen chapter comes early next year, and it has sand, rescue cans and the sacred Baywatch requirement: slow motion. Naturally, Amell seems fully aware of the assignment, because he had an A+ reaction to the very first footage from Baywatch.
There have been some photos leaking from set, but we now have our first teaser footage from Fox’s upcoming Baywatch reboot, and Amell shared the clip on his Instagram account with a caption that immediately made sense of the whole beachy opera. The video, which you can see below, shows quick flashes of plenty of surf, lifeguards, red swimsuits and his character sprinting across the sand like the ocean personally insulted him:
Honestly, it is about the best you could ask for from a fresh take on Baywatch. The footage knows exactly what people want from this franchise, and Amell’s caption is perfect for so many reasons. He wrote:
I dream in slow motion.
That is the only correct response to the footage, and for starring in the show, for that matter. You don’t just run on that show. You enter a red-swimsuit pocket dimension where every emergency unfolds at 40% speed, and everyone looks like they were carved out of sunscreen, gym memberships and dramatic saxophone. Naturally, slow-motion stretches as far as the eye can see.
The footage itself is brief, but those who cut this teaser know exactly what people expect from this franchise. It is not the least bit subtle, but subtlety has never really been the brand here. This is a show built on beach rescues and beautiful people sprinting toward danger while the camera captures them in a stunning Sports Illustrated level of composition.
The Arrow star’s role is a fun one, too, as he is playing Hobie Buchannon, the grown son of Mitch Buchannon, the lifeguard captain famously played by David Hasselhoff in the original series. To that point, Amell isn't opposed to Hasselhoff or other OGs making cameos. The new show sees Hobie now serving as a Baywatch captain, whose life gets complicated when Charlie, a daughter he never knew, arrives and wants to join the family rescue legacy.
That setup gives the reboot a smart way to tie itself to the old show without simply doing a greatest-hits cover band version of it. Hobie was part of the original Baywatch fabric, so aging him into a leadership role keeps the legacy connection intact while giving the new cast room to make their own sunburned messes.
Amell is joined in the reboot by fellow cast members Shay Mitchell, Brooks Nader (who has been taking nods from OG stars Pamela Anderson and Carmen Electra), Livvy Dunne, Noah Beck, Jessica Belkin and Thaddeus LaGrone. The production has already leaned into the classic red lifeguard look, with cast photos and footage showing the team in the kind of beachwear that might as well have its own Hollywood Walk of Fame star.
Early reports also claim original cast members Erika Eleniak and David Chokachi are expected to return, with Chokachi reprising Cody Madison and Eleniak back as Shauni McClain for a beach sporting event tied to Amell’s Hobie.
That kind of return makes sense for a reboot like this. Baywatch is such a specific, instantly recognizable piece of pop culture. Sure, it can be a little ridiculous, but it’s also weirdly durable and completely tied to its visual language. You need the red suits. You need the rescues. You need somebody running like time has politely stepped aside. And bringing back members of the OG cast adds some nice legacy gravitas while Stephen Amell steps into those swim shorts, shirtless and more than ready for duty.
The Baywatch reboot is expected to premiere on Fox during the 2026-27 TV season, beginning in January. Check your local listings for showtimes closer to release.
