"Nightcrawler" star Bill Paxton has joined CBS' "Training Day" series in one of the two lead roles. He will play Frank Rourke, who The Hollywood Reporter describes as "a veteran LAPD cop who heads up the Special Investigation Section (SIS), a unit that goes after the worst of the worst... He lives by the law of the jungle and believes that real courage is the will to chase the bad guys where the law won’t."

Paxton's role is comparable to Denzel Washington's character in the original film; as a veteran officer, he isn't too interested in training rookie cop Kyle Craig.

In addition to "Nightcrawler," the Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominee has appeared in films like "Edge of Tomorrow," "Million Dollar Arm," "Titanic" and "Apollo 13."

CBS has already ordered a pilot for “Training Day,” a reimagining of Antoine Fuqua’s acclaimed 2001 crime film. Fuqua will direct the pilot from a script by “Gangster Squad” screenwriter Will Beall. They’ll both serve as executive producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman.

The project, which was put into development in August by CBS, is set 15 years after the original, which starred Denzel Washington as a corrupt LAPD detective and Ethan Hawke as a rookie being evaluated on his first day as a narcotics officer. In the television version, Kyle — the young, idealistic cop — will be black and Frank, the veteran, will be white.

Washington earned an Academy Award for his performance in “Training Day,” while Hawke was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.