The Hitchhiker (TV series)

Did You Know?

• The title character was played by Nicholas Campbell for 3 episodes (1983–1984) and Page Fletcher for 82 episodes (1984–1991).
• The series had 39 first-run episodes on HBO and 46 first-run episodes on USA Network.
• The Australian DVD set omitted three episodes: "The Legendary Billy B.", "A Whole New You", and "Dead Heat".

Production

The series was a United States/Canada/France co-production, filmed in Vancouver, Toronto, and Paris. Corazon Productions produced the first season (three episodes), Quintina Productions handled seasons 2–4 (36 episodes), and La Cinq, Atlantique & Quintina Productions produced seasons 5–6 (46 episodes). Lewis Chesler and Riff Markowitz created the show, later joined by Richard Rothstein. The pilot consisted of three stories; Richard Rothstein wrote two, and Jeph Loeb and Matt Weissman wrote the third. Paul Hoffert composed the theme music.

Syndication

In 1995, The Hitchhiker entered syndication. HBO episodes were edited for content and running time to fit the 22-minute broadcast format with commercials. Reruns in Canada and Europe often retained nudity, language, and gore. Before 1995 syndication, the first three episodes were edited or reshot to replace Nicholas Campbell with Page Fletcher for continuity. Rysher Entertainment syndicated the series until 2000.

Home media

Lorimar Home Video released four VHS volumes of HBO episodes in 1987, each containing three episodes; the first two volumes were also issued on Beta format. Budget label Goodtimes Home Video released a single VHS volume of three USA Network episodes in 1989. HBO Home Video released a three-volume DVD set between 2004 and 2006, containing 30 episodes from both the HBO and USA Network runs. In Australia, volumes 1 and 2 were combined into a set of 17 episodes, omitting "The Legendary Billy B.", "A Whole New You", and "Dead Heat".

In the United Kingdom, only the first HBO volume was released, containing nine episodes and also omitting "The Legendary Billy B.". In Canada, Koch Entertainment released Canadian seasons 1 and 3 (corresponding to US seasons 1–3 and 5) on DVD in 2004, and The Complete Fourth Season (US season 6) in 2005; Canadian season 2 (US season 4) was not released due to unclear distribution rights. Alliance Home Entertainment released The Hitchhiker: The Complete Collection on DVD in Canada in 2011, combining the three HBO compilation volumes.

All episodes except "Minuteman" and "Doctor's Orders" (both from US season 4) were released on home video. As of 2025, the series is not available on HBO Max.