Sci Fi TV News Briefs: Quick hits keeping you updated on sci fi and fantasy television news.
Enter the Sandman: Netflix has signed a high-dollar deal to adapt Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series to television. The acclaimed comic book series first debuted in 1989 focusing on Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams, and offered a surreal mix of horror and mythology. There have been previous attempts to adapt the series as a feature film, but those never made it to the big screen. Warner Bros. TV and DC Entertainment will produce the series and it will come with a high price tag. Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman) will write and act as showrunner with Gaiman and David Goyer executive producing the series. While it seems like this one would have gone to the DCU streaming service or the upcoming WarnerMedia, the cost may have been prohibitive for the new streamers. Netflix has shown a willingness to pour money into high-profile productions, so Warner Bros may have decided that streaming service was the best landing place for the series. Eleven episodes have been ordered for the first season and this one will likely debut later in 2020.
Third Time’s a Charm? The CW has been attempting to get a Lost Boys series on television for a while now and will give that property a third shot next season. The network first tried two years ago with Rob Thomas attached to the show. That did not proceed with a pilot, but they kept the project alive for a second attempt this last Pilot Season. The network was not quite sold on the latest attempt, but are still hopeful that a third try will deliver what they are looking for. Most of the cast from the most recent pilot have been dismissed, which included Teen Wolf‘s Tyler Posey, but of Medalion Rahimi and Dakota Shapiro remain onboard. The network is targeting having a new pilot ready by the end of the year.
Return to Akira: A new Akira anime series is in the works that will adapt the full story from the original Manga according to an announcement from creator Katsuhiro Otomo at the Anime Expo. The 1988 movie is considered an Anime classic, but it diverged considerably from the original tale. The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic Tokyo as youths with psychic powers battle against each other. There is no target release date at this point and no network attached, but this project should draw plenty of interest.
Netflix Will Attend Midnight Mass: Netflix has ordered the new horror series Midnight Mass from Mike Flanagan and Trevor Macy, the creators of The Haunting of Hill House. Deadline Hollywood gives the following description for the series:
The seven-episode Midnight Mass follows an isolated island community that experiences miraculous events — and frightening omens — after the arrival of a charismatic, mysterious young priest.
This is part of the multi-year development deal that Flanagan and Macy have signed with the streaming service. Expect the new series to debut at some point in 2020.
Production Notes: Coby Bird has been cast in the role of Rufus Whedon in the upcoming Netflix adaptation of Locke & Key. J.A. Bayona (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) has been signed to direct the first two episodes of Amazon’s upcoming Lord of the Rings prequel series.
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