After more than 15 years away, Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the small screen, though the superstar is making sure this project is just as high-profile as his film work.

True Detective" creator Nic Pizzolatto on a drama series for HBO, though negotiations are still ongoing with the premium cable network. According to the trade, the project in question is an adaptation of classic CBS legal series "Perry Mason," which follows a defense attorney determined to exonerate his wrongfully accused clients.

Just how Downey plans to reboot the material remains unclear for now, though Variety notes that the actor has been trying to get this project off the ground as a feature film since at least 2011. Those plans never panned out -- purportedly due to the disappointing fate of Downey's other onscreen legal drama, the under-performing "The Judge" -- and the project has apparently been in the works at HBO since May.

If this series does come together, it will be a redemption story of sorts for Pizzolatto, whose once celebrated "True Detective" anthology series took a critical drubbing in its second season. HBO has all but cancelled the show (there's still a very, very slight chance it may return one day), though the network still has faith in the creator, signing Pizzolatto to a development deal earlier this year.

Downey last appeared on television in 2000, when he had a guest stint on another legal series, "Ally McBeal." No word yet on whether there will be any dancing babies in his version of "Perry Mason."

[via: Variety]

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