Across the pond, American attempts to remake some of our best-loved shows often fail at the first hurdle. We’ve seen botched attempts at the likes of Men Behaving Badly, Coupling, Red Dwarf and several others.

The latest to suffer from serious growing pains is Life On Mars, which was once overseen by US telly legend David E Kelley, but after a less-than-successful first pilot, has jettisoned all but its lead actor and relocated the series to New York to try again. The current producers have already added Sopranos star Michael Imperioli to the cast, but now they’ve tracked down an even bigger star to take on the iconic role of Gene Hunt, made famous by Philip Glennister.

Who, you ask? We’re not sure why you’re asking since it’s in the headline, but Harvey Keitel has just nabbed his first major role in a TV show. With Keitel on board, perhaps the show has a chance at success. We’ll let you know…

The Hollywood Reporter is surrounded by armed bastards.