Aeon Flux Will Return to Television as a Live-Action Series
MTV announced this week that it is working on a live-action reboot of Aeon Flux which started as an animated serial on Liquid TV in the 90’s and was followed by an animated series. Teen Wolf‘s Jeff Davis will be working on the scripts for the new series and TWD‘s Gale Anne Hurd will executive produce the series. Hollywood Reporter gives the following description for the project:
The live-action series is set in a future dystopian state and revolves around a young assassin who teams with a group of biohacking rebels to save humanity as she becomes the hero known as Aeon Flux.
The original series was created by Peter Chung and previously went through a live-action reboot on the big screen with Charlize Theron in the title role. That film flopped at the Box Office which should hopefully encourage the new creative team to tread lightly with their interpretation of the cult series. Expect the network to try and get this on their schedule at some point in 2019.
Star Trek: Discovery Loses Its Showrunners (Again)
The latest Star Trek television series is going through another round of behind-the-scenes shakeups as showrunners Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts will be exiting from the show. The series previously experienced the loss of a showrunner when Bryan Fuller departed early in the development phase before filming of the first season episodes had begun. Berg and Harberts had worked closely with Fuller early on, but now their influence will be gone from the show. CBS claims that the departure is not due to creative differences and that it was more of an “operational” issue. Executive producer Alex Kurtzman (Fringe, Limitless), who has been with the show since its early stages, will take over showrunner duties, though another person could be brought down the road. The show is currently in production on the fifth second season episode with plans for a late Fall start.
George R.R. Martin Provides More Info on the Game of Thrones Prequels
As covered last week, HBO has given the greenlight to the first of what could be several prequels for Game of Thrones, and George R.R. Martin has given a little more info on that one which will take place set thousands of years before the events of GoT. He has said that he would like it to be titled The Long Night, though he did not provide any information beyond that. He also indicated that one of the five projects that was in development has been shelved, but that “three more Game of Thrones prequels, set in different periods and featuring different characters and storylines, remain in active development”. The first of the prequels will likely not debut on the premium cable channel until late 2019 at the earliest.
Sci Fi TV Development: Netflix Heads to Mars and Orders Kaos
Netflix has given a ten-episode order to the sci fi drama Away which follows a manned mission to Mars. Deadline Hollywood gives the following description for the show:
Away centers on Emma Green, an American astronaut who must leave her husband and teenage daughter behind in order to command an international space crew embarking upon a treacherous, year-long mission. It is a series about hope, humanity and how ultimately, we need one another if we are to achieve impossible things.
Hulu is currently working on a similarly-themed series titled The First. The streaming service has also given a ten-episode order to the mythology-based series Kaos. Following is the logline for the series: “A darkly comedic and contemporary reimagining of Greek mythology, exploring themes of gender politics, power, and life in the underworld”. Both will likely join the streaming service’s other originals at some point in 2019.
FX is working on a television adaptation of The Changeling, based on the Victor LaValle novel of the same name. Hollywood Reporter gives the following description of the project:
The Changeling is described as a fairy tale for grown-ups. Set in a New York no one knew existed, the drama focuses on the death-defying odyssey of Apollo Kagwa and Emma Valentine as they look to find out what happened to the son who was removed from them. On their voyage, they will travel through enchanted isles and haunted woodlands, meet glowing witches, demon giants and racist cops. They will deal with the perils of personal technology and social media, toxic masculinity, the mental health of new mothers and fathers, and find out if surviving a fairy tale is as brutal as simply surviving in Trumplandia.
The network will likely be targeting 2019 to get this series on the air.
Sci Fi TV Status Report: TBS Cans the Third Season of People of Earth
TBS had announced a third season renewal for People of Earth in Fall 2017, but apparently the network changed its mind and decided not to go forward with the show according to creator David Jenkins who revealed the news on Twitter. The second season of the series had performed pretty close to the numbers of the first year ratings-wise, and production of the show had been moving forward with scripts having been written. TBS has made no comment on the cancellation at this point, so it is uncertain why the network decided to sack the third season at this late hour.
In ratings news, FOX’s Ghosted slipped back on the schedule this past Sunday with little notice and only managed to post a 0.4 rating base on same day viewing for the 18-49 demographic with 1.2 million total viewers across two episodes. The network had previously indicated that it would air the remaining episodes for the show in Summer and then decide on whether to bring it back for a second season. But with little promotion and airing amidst repeats, it appears the show is in burn-off mode. Be sure to follow CancelledSciFi.com and the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site to keep track of the renewal / cancellation prospects of your favorite shows.
Sci Fi TV Schedule: Premieres for Luke Cage Season 2 and Preacher Season 3
Two more shows join the Summer schedule next week and two shows will be wrapping up. Netflix’s Luke Cage returns for its second season on Friday with all thirteen episodes available for streaming that day. Then on Sunday, AMC’s Preacher returns for its third season in the 10 PM EST timeslot. On Monday, The CW’s Supergirl wraps up its third season, but look for that one to have a quick return as it shifts to Sunday nights starting in Fall. Then on Sunday night next week HBO’s Westworld wraps up its second season. You can see the full Summer schedule of sci fi and fantasy shows at this link and you can keep up with the weekly listings at this link.
More Sci Fi TV News
The upcoming live-action Star Wars television series, to be helmed by Jon Favreau, could start filming this Fall with plans to land on the Disney streaming service in Fall 2019.
A new line of action figures based on The Real Ghostbusters animated series is on the way from Diamond Select Toys. Now if only we can get that cult-favorite show on one of the streaming services . . .
The second season of Netflix’s Iron Fist will debut later this year and Danny Rand will be getting his costume according to Marvel’s head of television Jeph Loeb.
