Freddie Prinze Jr. Plans to Star in Sitcom

NEW YORK – Freddie Prinze Jr. (search) has signed a deal with Warner Bros. and ABC to create and star in his own sitcom.

Although the 28-year-old "Scooby-Doo" actor has popped up for guest spots on "Boston Legal" and "Friends," he's most noted for his turns in both "Scooby-Doo" movies and the slasher film "I Know What You Did Last Summer."

"This was something I wanted to do for a long time," Prinze told The Associated Press while on the set of his latest movie.

"It's tough working on the road all the time. I love my family. I love my wife. I miss them. I want to be in Los Angeles. A TV schedule, especially half-hour, allows you the opportunity to go and make movies when you want to make movies and then still be able to satisfy yourself creatively from home."

In the sitcom, Prinze will portray a Puerto Rican raised in a household of women, an experience he said is based on his own life. Prinze was raised by his mother in New Mexico after his father, "Chico and the Man" star Freddie Prinze (search), committed suicide in 1977.

"I told them I won't do TV unless I'm the executive producer, unless I'm the creator, unless I'm a writer on the show," Prinze said. "If that's a problem, I understand that and respect that. I have to make sure it's represented the way it is. The only way to do that is if I have one boss and not seven."

Prinze, who's married to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" star Sarah Michelle Gellar (search), is filming the coming-of-age drama "Nailed Right In" with Alec Baldwin and Mena Suvari in New York. He said he has no fears about the wishy-washy world of TV sitcoms.

"When I focus on something, I usually succeed in this business," Prinze told the AP. "I'm more scared about flying."