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Unfortunately for Octavia Spencer, NBC has decided not to move forward with its reboot of the popular mystery series “Murder, She Wrote.” The Academy Award-winning actress was cast to star in the upcoming remake, but according to reports, the network called off the project indefinitely.

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In the plot for the new version, Spencer played a hospital administrator and amateur detective who goes on to publish her first mystery novel. In the original TV series, which aired on CBS for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996, starred Angela Lansbury as Jessica Fletcher, a retired teacher-turned-mystery writer who lived in Maine and solved her own cases.

According to Deadline,“Rebooting an iconic series is extremely difficult, as proved by a string of efforts, including NBC’s attempt at a contemporary “Rockford Files” from “House” creator David Shore and producer Steve Carell, which didn’t go to series. It took two attempts with different writers for a new “Hawaii Five-0” to get on the air. The same happened with “Prime Suspect” — it was actually Cunningham’s take that got NBC brass’ approval and attracted Maria Bello for a well-received remake of the British drama — and with ABC’s “Charlie’s Angels.”

Lansbury, 88, was against the revamp from the beginning. “I think it’s a mistake to call it Murder, She Wrote because Murder, She Wrote will always be about Cabot Cove and this wonderful little group of people who told those lovely stories and enjoyed a piece of that place, and also enjoyed Jessica Fletcher, who is a rare and very individual kind of person,” she said.

However, NBC did confirmed that the project will be revisited again, just at a later date.

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Despite the cancellation, we are sure Spencer will come up on top. She’s one of the most sought-after actresses this pilot season!

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