America’s Most Wanted revival ordered at Fox

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Criminals beware! Fox is bringing back one of its past signature programs that were responsible for putting away many wanted criminals behind bars. America's Most Wanted is set for a revival but one key element is going to be missing from the new season.

Emmy-winning journalist Elizabeth Vargas will host the new launch of America's Most Wanted and will succeed John Walsh, who was the face of the original program during its initial run. Walsh hosted 25 seasons of America's Most Wanted, which initially ran from 1988-2011. At the time of its cancellation, America's Most Wanted was the longest-running program in the network's history, but it has since been surpassed by The Simpsons. Despite John Walsh no being involved with the new show, Walsh has given his blessing to the new take by saying "Capturing dangerous fugitives, bringing justice to victims and finding missing children is my lifetime's work. I am so excited to hear America's Most Wanted is coming back and I support its return. God bless." Walsh could also appear on the program if his current commitments allow him to do so.

The new America's Most Wanted will have the same goal as its predecessor and that is to get the public's help to track down some of the country's most dangerous and elusive fugitives. The new twist being added allows the show to take advantage of technology and other avenues that will make it even easier for the country to help crack some of these cases. Social media, which wasn't at all prevalent during the original run of the show, will play a key role in attempting to catch fugitives that have eluded justice but giving viewers an instant connection to the America's Most Wanted team. Rob Wade, President of Alternative Entertainment & Specials at Fox Entertainment, had this to say about the relaunch:

"It is about bringing people together, it is about unifying the country together in the pursuit of these criminals. The show has the ability to create a huge impact on society and resonate with audiences. I think it represents in many ways the heart of America."

The revival will be similar to the original show by using crime reenactments that will utilize new state-of-the-art-crime-fighting technology, such as augmented reality and 3-D life-size avatars that will illustrate what suspects might look like now. The show will also utilize pinpoint map-tracking that will make the audience feel like they're right on the trail of suspects. The program will have help from the FBI, access to Interpol files, and will also be able to use international police forces to help with the search. High-profile cases will also be featured and they will include cold cases from the original show that still remain unsolved. Smaller cases will also be explored to help local law enforcement with current crimes that don't necessarily garner nationwide attention.

The new America's Most Wanted will stay very current by filming 2-3 days before the episode airs and after the previous episode has run, there will be an update on the cases presented the prior week. Fox plans on getting the word out on the profiled cases prior to broadcast by including them in promos for the episode so the audience can begin sending tips that may result in an update in the premiere telecast.

America's Most Wanted will launch in March and after its live airings on Fox, the episodes will be available on Fox Entertainment's streaming platform, Tubi, as well as On-Demand, Fox Now, and Hulu.