Bright 2 Brings Back Most of the Principals from the First Film

Netflix already announced plans for a sequel to its urban fantasy film Bright, and now we know that most of the team from the first movie will be returning. Will Smith and Joel Edgerton are set to return in the leading roles and David Ayer will be back in the director’s chair. Max Landis will not be returning as writer, but Ayer will pick up the pen to write the script for the second film. The first movie had eleven million views over its first three days and Netflix has said that it is the highest-viewed original film on the service. There is no word at this point on when to expect the sequel, but I would guess that it will bow late 2019 or early 2020.

The Voyage for The Orville May Not Continue Until 2019

It is becoming increasingly more common these days for shows to have more than a year break between seasons due to the higher production values, and the time required to achieve that. And FOX’s space comedy The Orville may be the latest show impacted by that trend. At the TCAs this week, Seth McFarlane indicated that the second season would almost certainly not be ready by the start of the Fall 2018 season. He did not specifically say that the show would not return until 2019, but that could be the case if additional production time is needed to get the show ready. The Orville will have fourteen episodes in its second season (up from twelve in its first), but that is largely because one episode from the first year has been held over. McFarlane also indicated that The Orville could have a crossover with Family Guy next season if network execs give it the greenlight.

The Final Season of Game of Thrones Set for 2019

A show that will definitely not return until 2019 is HBO’s Game of Thrones, but then we already knew that. Early word was that the eighth and final season of that show would not be ready until 2019, and now the network has confirmed that. The final season will consist of six episodes and most if not all will go longer than sixty minutes. Expect the final season debut to be around April of 2019.

Syfy Officially Orders Nightflyers Series

Production has been moving forward at Syfy on Nightflyers, based on the George R.R. Martin story, and now the network has placed an order for a ten-episode first season. Among the stars of the series will be Gretchen Mol, Eoin Macken, David Ajala, and Sam Strike. Following is the description of the series provided by Variety:

The story follows eight maverick scientists and a powerful telepath who embark on an expedition to the edge of our solar system in the hopes of contacting alien life. They travel aboard The Nightflyer – a ship with a small tightknit crew and a reclusive captain. But when terrifying and violent events begin to take place they start to question each other, and surviving the journey proves harder than anyone thought.

Martin will not be closely involved with the series as he is busy with other projects. Expect Nightflyers to debut late 2018 or early 2019.

The X-Files May be Coming to an End After Its Current Season

Gillian Anderson announced a while back that she does not plan to reprise her role as Dana Scully in The X-Files after the current season, and Chris Carter has said that he will not return to the show if Anderson is out. And at the TCAs this week, FOX CEO indicated that there are no current plans for additional seasons:

You could’ve asked Chris, David, and Gillian at various times since the show originally premiered whether they would do more. Some days you’d get a ‘yes’, some days you’d get a ‘no.’ I would not exclude the possibility that there would be more. But not only is there no plan, there hasn’t been a single conversation. It’s too early to even speculate.

That show returned on Wednesday with ratings notably lower than what it saw in its first revival season, so FOX may not have much incentive to continue the series beyond the current season.

Sci Fi TV Schedule: Next Week Brings Premieres of Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams and The Magicians

Mid-Season continues to roll forward as next week brings two more season premieres. On Wednesday, Syfy’s The Magicians returns for its third season. On Friday, Philip K. Dick’s Electric Dreams has its debut on Amazon. That show has already aired in Britain to much acclaim and will now be starting up its run in the States. Also next week, Hulu’s Runaways will have its Season 1 finale on Tuesday. You can keep up with the weekly listings of sci fi and fantasy shows at this link and you can see the full Mid-Season schedule at this link.

More Sci Fi TV News

The full six season run of Lost has made the move from Netflix to Hulu starting this month. If you have Hulu, you can stream the series at this link.

Syfy has announced February 7th as the premiere date for the third season of Channel Zero (to be subtitled Butcher’s Block) and Netflix has announced March 30th as the premiere date for the second season of A Series of Unfortunate Events. You can see the full Mid-Season schedule at this link.

News Roundup from This Past Week

Cancellation Watch Breaking News: FOX Renews The Gifted for a Second Season, Has No Current Plans for More X-Files Read

Sci Fi TV Trailers: A Series of Unfortunate Events S2, Arrow-verse Return, Channel Zero Butcher’s Block, and More Watch

Cancellation Watch: As We Head Into Mid-Season, Where do Agents of SHIELD, The Walking Dead, The Gifted and the Rest of the Fall Shows Stand? Read