New Knight Rider, Will Arnett To Voice KITT

The studio behind an upcoming TV movie revamp of 1980s cult TV series Knight Rider unveiled some details about the project this week, including a new car and the casting of Canadian comic actor Will Arnett.

Arnett, best known for his role on the critically acclaimed but short-lived series Arrested Development, has signed on as the voice of the smooth-talking, artificially intelligent sports car KITT (short for Knight Industries Two Thousand) — voiced in the original series by veteran actor William Daniels.

The Toronto-born actor, whose recent credits include stints on TV's 30 Rock and a supporting role in the comedy Blades of Glory, has also developed a sideline as a voice actor recording for animated shows, network promotions, movie trailers and advertisements.

Producers have also changed KITT from the slickly modified Pontiac Trans Am of the original series to a suped-up Ford Mustang Shelby.

The new Knight Rider KITT car made its public debut Wednesday. And as leaked on the blogosphere last month, it's a Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR.

"Quite honestly, we thought this was the coolest looking car," said Dave Bartis, an executive producer on NBC's upcoming Knight Rider TV movie, set to air in February.

NBC held a press conference today officially announcing the return of Knight Rider to network TV. The new show will debut as a two-hour movie on February 17th with a cast that includes Justin Bruening, Deanna Russo, Sydney Tamiia Poitier and Bruce Davison. Also confirmed is the return of David Hasselhoff in the role of an elder Michael Knight. Finally, the character we care about most, KITT, has been officially confirmed as a Ford GT500KR. The voice of KITT will also be none other than Will Arnett, husband of Saturday Night Live's Amy Poehler and ex-alum of the TV show Arrested Development.