Netflix Has Unlocked Locke and Key
The attempt to do a live-action adaptation of Locke and Key, based on the Joe Hill comic book of the same name, has a storied history over nearly a ten year period, but now the show is finally headed to the small screen. It started in 2010 when there were talks of a feature film. That fell through but then development began on a pilot for a TV series with Carlton Cuse (Lost) as executive producer and Josh Friedman (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) as showrunner. The pilot was completed and was well-received at Comic-Con, but FOX decided to pass on the series. Then in 2017, Hulu commissioned a pilot with much of the same creative team that worked on the 2011 version. That streaming service also decided to pass, but then Netflix showed an interest in the series. Now, after mulling it over for a couple of months, the streaming giant has officially placed a ten-episode order for the series. Carlton Cuse is still onboard, but Friedman bowed out a while back. The series is based on the fan-favorite comic that follows three siblings who inherit an ancient mansion that has magical keys that unlock mysterious powers. Netflix will likely target late 2019 or early 2020 to for the series to debut.
The New Buffy Series Will Apparently Be a Continuation of the Original
Last weekend at Comic-Con, word broke that a reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was in the works with Joss Wheden executive producing and Monica Owusu-Breen (Midnight Texas, Agents of SHIELD) writing an acting as showrunner. That announcement generated a great deal of concern among longtime fans who believed that Buffy was in no need of a reboot. Owusu-Breen tried to allay concerns with the following tweet:
— monicaowusubreen (@monicabreen) July 26, 2018
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
This strongly suggests that the new series will be a continuation of the original and not a complete reboot that ignores and re-casts the original series. Consider it Buffy: The Next Generation. How they will explain the new slayer having the same name as the last, I don’t know, but this one appears to be on the right track at this point.
Netflix is Working on a YA Sci Fi Twist on Lord of the Flies
Yet another development announcement for the streaming service, Netflix has placed a ten episode order for a Lord of the Flies-like series from Marc Webb (Limitless) and Chris Keyser. Hollywood Reporter gives the following description for the project:
It revolves around young adults fighting for survival. Teens are forced to take matters into their own hands when they return to their town from a trip cut short to find that everyone is missing and there’s no way out of the town. Teens will party, panic, grieve, fight and ultimately be forced to decide how to deal with the unthinkable.
The streaming service will likely be targeting some point in 2019 for this one to debut.
Sci Fi TV Status Report: Syfy’s Superstition and Cinemax’s Outcast Appear to Be Done
Syfy’s freshman supernatural series Superstition wrapped up its first season early this year and has since been waiting for word on its fate. But it appears that it may be done after one season because series co-star Robinne Lee has tweeted that there are no plans in place for a second season. Cinemax’s supernatural drama Outcast had it second season debut last week, but it seems unlikely that one could be back for a third year because the actors contracts have been allowed to expire. 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: Hulu Releases First Trailer for The First Which Debuts Sep 14
Hulu announced last week that its mission to Mars series The First will be debuting on September 14th and the streaming service has now released the first trailer for that show (see above). As for this coming week’s schedule, The CW’s The Originals wraps up after five seasons with its series finale on Wednesday and Freeform’s Cloak & Dagger has its season finale on Thursday. You can see the preliminary Fall 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 final season of Game of Thrones is getting closer as HBO has announced it will debut during the first half of 2019. Expect it to arrive sometime around April of next year.
Netflix has picked up the global distribution of TNT’s upcoming series Snowpiercer, based on the movie of the same name. The show will have its debut on TNT at some point in 2019 and stars Jennifer Connelly and Daveed Diggs.
Christopher Judge has indicated that he would like to do a Stargate: SG-1 spin-off series that focus on Jaffa.
Cody Fern will play an older Michael Langdon on the upcoming eighth season of American Horror Story. Langdon is the son of Tate Langdon and Vivien Harmon from the first season of the series.
A Chinese adaptation of Humans, which currently airs on AMC in the States and Channel 4 in Britain, is in the works. The English version is based on the Swedish series Real Humans.
