Good Idea or Bad? Looking at various sci fi and fantasy television projects currently in the works and pondering whether they will fly or crash.
What Is It?
The 1995 feature film takes place five hundred years in the future when the polar ice caps have melted and covered the Earth in water. A loner who is known only as the Mariner (and who is a mutant that can breather underwater) finds himself protecting a girl named Enola who has a tattoo on her back the is the key to finding the mythical place known as “Dryland”. They go on the run in the Mariner’s boat from marauders known as The Smokers who want to exploit the information contained in her tattoo. It starred Kevin Costner, Dennis Hopper, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tina Majorino, and Michael Jeter.
What Is in the Works?
Universal Content Productions is planning as a continuation of the original movie that will pick up twenty years later focusing on the same characters. No additional details are currently available nor is there any word on whether they will attempt to get the original actors to reprise their roles. The film’s producer John Davis is involved with the series and 10 Cloverfield Lane‘s Dan Trachtenberg has been attached as director. A network has not been identified yet, but this will be an expensive venture–as was the original film–so it will likely head to one of the major streaming services since they have been throwing a lot of money at their original productions of late. UCP is owned by NBCUniversal, so consider Peacock to be a likely landing spot for the series if it does go forward.
Good Idea or Bad?
The original film was notorious for its cost overuns and it ended up failing to turn a profit in theaters even though it performed well at the Box Office. It was also not well received by critics, often referred to as a big budget rehash of Mel Gibson’s The Road Warrior on water. But over time, opinions on the film have softened and it has developed somewhat of a cult following. It was actually not a bad movie, it just suffered from blockbuster bloat. And a TV series continuation certainly offers an opportunity to revisit the original premise and mine it for the potential the movie never fully realized.
There are certainly plenty of directions that the television sequel could take, and the movie established an interesting enough world (even if it failed to fully delve into it) to keep a series going for several years. And I am sure that fans of the original film would enjoy seeing familiar faces return for the show (Kevin Costner would likely not be available, though, as he is busy with Yellowstone over on the Paramount Network). On the other hand, this will be an expensive show to produce as productions that take place on the water tend to be costly. And television has been rather saturated with post-apocalyptic entries of late. Can a Waterworld series really add much new to the sub-genre?
I believe that this has promise, but I also see where it can sink rather quickly. If they have all the right people in place, this could be a very good idea and it could right some of the wrongs of the movie. But if this one gets out of control like the original film did, it could turn out to be a very bad idea.
Notable Facts
Waterworld had its premiere in theaters in July 1995 and was based on an original screenplay. It debuted at Number 1 at the Box Office, but since it was the most expensive film made up to that point, it had a long ways to go to turn a profit. The estimated budget was $175 million and Universal spent over $50 million to promote the film. Its global Box Office receipts totaled $264 million which put it in the red after its run in the theaters (about half of the money for the receipts goes back to the studio from domestic venues, and less than that ineternationally). Critics gave the movie mixed reviews and it was generally considered a major flop all around after its release. Since that time, though, people have looked at it in a more favorable light and the film eventually turned a profit based on home video sales and encore runs on television. A Waterworld stunt show has since become a popular attraction at Universal Studios theme parks.
Do you consider a Waterworld television series to be a good idea or bad? Chime in with your comments below.
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