Yet Another Small-Screen Search Goes Into Action

TV’s “search and sing” mission has just ended. But the new “search and destroy” mission is just beginning.

Hollywood is still reeling from the finale of “American Idol,” which recently crowned a Texas cocktail waitress as the next singing “superstar” after a search of several months. HBO’s “Project Greenlight” fell short in its search for the new visionary filmmaker. Bravo’s “The It Factor” is carrying on with its search for the next movie star. NBC’s “Fear Factor” is on a weekly search for the perfect bug eater.

Television’s search mania will continue this fall with a new television show that is looking for the next action hero and heroine. While Vin Diesel of “XXX” and Jennifer Garner of ABC’s “Alias” might not be quaking in their fighting boots just yet, the producers of the new NBC series think the winners might give those stars a run-and-tumble for their money.

The new 10-episode project has the “just the facts” title of “The Next Action Star,” and comes courtesy of action-movie mogul Joel Silver, the producer of testosterone-fueled epics such as the “Lethal Weapon” movies, “The Matrix” and “Swordfish.” Producing the series along with Silver Pictures Television is NBC Studios and GRB Entertainment.

“The search for the next big star has always gone on, but now the process will come into the living room,” said Gary Benz, president of GRB Entertainment. He noted that Silver was instrumental in developing the careers of Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mel Gibson.

Producers will roam the country to find prospective action stars with an “it factor” (although not the same “it” that Bravo is seeking). The contestants will be brought to live together in Hollywood and gradually winnowed down to a final pair. The two will then be cast in a Silver-produced movie, “Hit Me,” that will air on NBC.

Said Benz: “It’s very hard to pinpoint what that ‘it factor’ is. But after working on producing stunts for 22 years, I know that what goes on behind the scenes is often a lot more interesting than what happens in front of the camera.”

A press release on the project declared that “Hit Me” “will feature an adrenalin-fortified story line that will not only challenge the new stars physically, but will put their on-screen charm and charisma to the test.”

There was no immediate word on whether any of the contestants of “American Idol” would try out for “The Next Action Star.”