Billion Dollar Freshmen (lost unaired pilot episode of "Lab Rats" Disney XD live-action comedy TV series; 2010)

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BDFCast.jpg

A picture of the cast from the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot.

Status: Lost

Lab Rats is an American live-action comedy TV series that aired on Disney XD and Disney Channel from February 27th, 2012 to February 3rd, 2016. The show revolved around a team of bionic teens (Chase, Adam, and Bree) going on adventures yet trying to adapt to living with a real family, including their new stepbrother Leo and genius father Davenport, in the fictional town of Mission Creek, California.[1]

Before the show had officially premiered on Disney XD and Disney Channel, an unaired pilot was produced, with the show then being titled Billion Dollar Freshmen. This pilot featured various differences from the final show, however, the unaired pilot has not surfaced since.

History[edit | edit source]

In the summer of 2010,[2] a pilot was shot for the show that would eventually become Lab Rats, then titled Billion Dollar Freshmen.[3] According to various sources, the plot goes as follows:

"The show centers on two teenage brothers, Adam and Brad, in high school who have a secret – they’re bionic super soldiers implanted with high-tech bionic abilities such as super-strength, night vision, and ability to download information. Now they must blend in with the real world while on the run from the government after they hear they may be demolished and replaced by upgraded versions."[3][4]

The pilot was created by Chris Peterson and Bryan Moore, along with the executive producer Mark Brazil of That ’70s Show fame. The pilot would also be directed by Mark Cendrowski of The Big Bang Theory fame.[4]

The pilot featured various differences from the final show, such as the plot being slightly different, involving more of a "government escape" of the bionics instead of being created at Leo Dooley's house. The plot was also described as a "teenage, inflation-adjusted version of The Six Million Dollar Man set in high school."[4] Bree was also not present in the pilot, and Donald Davenport's character was originally named Gil L. Arroy.

Availability[edit | edit source]

After the pilot ordered and pitched to Disney, the pilot has never been released to the public and no footage has ever been leaked online. The only remains of the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot online are two audition tapes for both Zach Ford and Harrison Thacher respectively. These audition tapes were uploaded onto YouTube by users Tracy Ford and Harrison Thacher's own channel, HarrisonThacher. Various behind-the-scenes images and a short recreation of the pilot also exist.

Gallery[edit | edit source]

  • A behind-the-scenes photo of the pilot.

  • Another behind-the-scenes photo of the pilot.

  • A photo of a set piece from the pilot.

Videos[edit | edit source]

Zach Ford's audition tape for the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot.
Harrison Thacher's audition tape for the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot.
A short recreation of the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot.


See Also[edit | edit source]

Disney Channel[edit | edit source]

Playhouse Disney[edit | edit source]

Disney Junior[edit | edit source]

Toon Disney[edit | edit source]

Disney XD[edit | edit source]

Other[edit | edit source]

External Links[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ A press release mentioning the plot of Lab Rats. Retrieved 12 Aug '21
  2. ↑ Billy Unger's page on the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot. Retrieved 13 Aug '21
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cybermage article on the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot (archived on July 2nd, 2010). Retrieved 13 Aug '21
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Deadline article on the Billion Dollar Freshmen pilot. Retrieved 13 Aug '21
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