News, updates, and (mostly viable) rumors relating to development of science fiction / fantasy television productions. If you have tips or more info on these or other productions, please pass them along in the comments.
Development announcements for sci fi / fantasy shows are down to a trickle now (all the studios are busy working on those pilots), but we did get an important update this week and word on another new show in the works.
The Walking Dead Sequel: We’ve known this one was coming for a while and we still don’t have a title for it, but AMC has announced that the TWD spin-off will premiere in late Summer and also that they have greenlit it for two seasons. Information on the show is still sketchy, but we have learned that it “will be set in Los Angeles and focused on new characters and storylines”. AMC president Charlie Collier added to that saying “we’ve been asked questions about what was going on in other parts of the zombie apocalypse, and what it looked like as the world really did ‘turn.’ Through this new series, we’re going to find out.”
The first season will be six episodes long similar to the way that the parent series started. Apparently AMC wants to test the waters and see how popular the sequel will be (not too much to worry about there) and then they will make a decision on how many episodes to order for the second year (expect around 12). Series creator Robert Kirkman calls this “a serious show of faith from” AMC, but it’s essentially a no risk undertaking for the network. Because even if the sequel tanks (it won’t), they could still just tack it onto TWD‘s syndication run (which has already started) and they are guaranteed to get their money back. In any case, many fans (including myself) are eagerly awaiting the sequel and it should ease the long wait between TWD Season 5 and 6 as it will take up at least some of the dead space during the break (no apologies for that one).
49th Key: Torchwood and Arrow star John Barrowman is working on a adaptation of the fantasy story 49th Key written by Erika Lewis. The first installment of this tale appears in the newest issue of Heavy Metal (#273) and Hollywood Reporter describes it as follows:
The first chapter in an expansive fantasy series tells of a rogue archeologist and a young autistic and mute boy on a treacherous journey through England to bring the boy home. The boy turns out to be the key to a gateway between our world and that of Enochia, a magical society that exists below the Earth’s surface, filled with fantasy creatures and highly advanced humans.
This one is very early in the development stage and no studio or network has been attached yet.
