Our ongoing look back at sci fi / fantasy TV shows that were cancelled way too soon or pilots that never made it to series.
Every year the television networks order pilots for series they will consider adding to their upcoming schedule, and every year several of these end up not going forward. I covered the 2018 pilots that failed to get a series pickup a couple of weeks ago at this link. Here’s a look at several of the more promising pilots from 2017 that were grounded before they began.
Doomsday (ABC)
Description: After 9/11, a group of the world’s most brilliant “out-of-the-box” thinkers is put together to consider other manmade disasters and formulate possible solutions. Years later they are reassembled when one of the scenarios they presented actually happens.
Starring: Claire Holt, Justin Chatwin, Jack Davenport, Taye Diggs
Comments: This sounds like one of those not-quite-sci-fi entries, but it could have explored some of the same “what if” ideas we often see presented by the genre. It could have turned into an interesting show if it managed to avoid the procedural rut.
Lost Boys (CW)
Description: Coming from Rob Thomas, this would re-imagine the 1987 film about young vampires, with an over-arching plan to have it follow the characters over seven seasons, with each season covering a 10-year period.
Comments: With Thomas involved, this could have provided an interesting twist on the original film, but it appears to have been buried in favor of other projects.
The Machine (Syfy)
Description: In a future world, the emergence of artificial intelligence leads to a conflict between humans and technology that could decide the fate of the human race.
Starring: Bridger Zadina, Olly Rix, Katee Sackhoff, Lance Henriksen, Indira Varma
Comments: Based on the 2013 film of the same name, this was shaping up to have a lot of potential, especially with Sackhoff and Henriksen joining the cast. Syfy passed on the project, but there is still a chance it could surface on another network at some point.
Mission Control (CBS)
Description: NASA personnel juggle their personal and professional lives as they work on a critical mission of near-space exploration.
Starring: Ellen Wroe, Peyton List, David Giuntoli
Comments: This one came from Andy Weir of The Martian fame, and sounded like it could have delivered a good speculative fiction series that championed space travel in a time when the country has lost interest in that endeavor. However, I didn’t like the idea of this one landing at sci-fi-averse CBS, and had a hard time seeing it fitting in with their routine lineup of sitcoms, procedurals and reality shows. Fortunately, Hulu is working on a very similar premise with The First which should be debuting later this year.
Redliners (NBC)
Description: Based on a series of short stories by True Blood‘s Charlaine Harris, this one follows a group of operatives who have been reactivated and drawn into a global conspiracy.
Starring: Tommy Flanagan, Hannah Ware, Greg Germann
Comments: I don’t know too much about the original Harris stories, but this one sounded like yet another convoluted, conspiracy-laden series. Shaun Cassidy (American Gothic, Invasion) was attached, though, so perhaps he could have added some interesting twists.
Searchers (CW)
Description: A brother and sister discover that the stories their late mother used to tell them have real-life links to the legends and myths of old from across the world.
Starring: Alex McGregor, Marc Blucas, Zane Holtz
Comments: This Greg Berlanti entry (a rare miss for him) could have been interesting. The pilot was shopped around, but apparently it did not generate much interest.
Spaced Out (NBC)
Description: In this The-Office-goes-to-space series, a group of people must overcome their differences while building a rocket that will travel to Mars.
Starring: Miranda Cosgrove, Christine Woods, Donald Faison
Comments: This one had iCarly star Miranda Cosgrove in the lead and could have turned into a fun little show. Since it didn’t make it, you could check out Paul Fieg’s Other Space which was a fun little show until Yahoo got out of the business of producing scripted original programming.
Witchblade (NBC)
Description: Based on the comic book of the same name, police detective Sara Pezzini discovers the supernatural powers of the gauntlet known as the Witchblade and uses those to fight evil.
Comments: This one actually never made it to the pilot stage as NBC only ordered a few scripts and had Vampire Diaries showrunner Caroline Dries working on development. That network apparently decided not to move forward with it, but it could resurface at some point. TNT previously did a Witchblade series that ran for two seasons from 2001–2. There was also an Anime featuring the character that was produced in 2004.
