The Daily Gamecock

Issue date: 2/18/08 Section: The Mix

Media Credit: Paul Drinkwater, MCT Campus Bruening, left, talks with Hasselhoff at a premiere party.

Justin Bruening may not follow the career path of David Hasselhoff, but the comparison is tempting.

Bruening is going from the daytime drama "All My Children" to a starring role in the new TV movie "Knight Rider." Hasselhoff was able to make the leap in 1982 from the daytime drama "The Young and the Restless" to prime time with his starring role in "Knight Rider."

Whether serving a stint as a TV lifeguard or being a judge in a talent show, as Hasselhoff as done, is in Bruening's future is anyone's guess.

But the two will be in the new NBC movie Sunday night.

Hasselhoff reprises his role as Michael Knight for the movie. Bruening plays Mike Traceur, Knight's estranged son. The two actors met on the first day of filming.

"I had a lot of questions. I mean, I was pretty nervous about continuing this franchise. It's pretty big shoes to fill," Bruening says. "Obviously I asked him a lot about what kind of fun he had on the original show and things like that."

"He was one of the first people to mention that the key of the show is the relationship between a man and his car. And how they do become best friends," he said.

Where Hasselhoff as Michael Knight got to bond with a Trans Am, Bruening's character gets to drive a Mustang. The voice of KITT was supplied by William Daniels in the original series. Val Kilmer gives voice to the new chatty car.

"Working with the new KITT, that was an amazing experience. Actually, it's the Shelby Cobra 500GTKR. It's an absolutely amazing piece of machinery. All our little bells and whistles that we added to it also heighten the experience," Bruening says.

He then sarcastically adds, "He gets a little standoffish and stuff and doesn't talk all the time. But other than that..."

The original KITT could do everything from spray oil to jam electrical systems. "Knight Rider" executive producer David Bartis says the new version of KITT has plenty of its own surprises.

"I think everybody knows already that the car has the ability to morph. It can shape shift a little bit in ways that enhance its handling and its abilities on the road. It also has some sort of weapon defense systems that are based on nanotechnology that I think are going to be pretty amazing when people see the way we've built the effects there," Bartis says. "It's got a pretty deep arsenal of abilities and tricks there."

Bruening, who will be behind the wheel of the new KITT, has had a love of cars since he was young.

"My uncle had a 1977 Chevy Camaro that I absolutely loved. That was the first muscle car I had ever been around," Bruening says.

Bruening, a Nebraska native, started as a model. His first job was in an Abercrombie & Fitch advertising campaign. He began to study acting and joined the cast of "All My Children" in July 2003.

If the TV movie generates enough total viewers, a "Knight Rider" series could follow.

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