Virtuality delivered an intricate and well thought out sci fi premise, but it was almost certainly too complex for the network execs and did not get picked up as an ongoing series.
What Is It?
This two hour TV movie was written and produced by Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar: Galactica, Outlander) and it follows the crew of a deep space mission headed to the Epsilon Eridani star system on a journey that will take ten years. Their day-to-day activities on the ship are recorded and transmitted back to Earth where viewers watch them on television, reality series-style (this helps with the funding of the mission). In addition, each crew member has a virtual reality module that they can use as an escape from the rigors of deep space travel (which is very long and dull). However, a glitch in the programming has led to several bad experiences in the virtual world, and the crew considers switching off the system for the duration of the mission. This glitch extends beyond that, though, and ultimately leads to the death of one of the crew members which points toward a potentially subversive situation unfolding on the ship.
Aired: FOX, June 26 2009
Starring: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Kerry Bishé, Joy Bryant, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Ritchie Coster, James D’Arcy, Clea DuVall
Created By: Ronald D. Moore
Why Didn’t it Fly?
As you may gather from the description above, this pilot is very dense and takes a while to warm up to, so it makes sense that the network executives were scared off by the property. FOX chose to pass on the series before airing the pilot, though they did give the movie a burn-off run in the Summer of 2009. The wife of Erik Jensen who portrayed Dr. Jules Braun in the telefilm tried to rally fans to watch its one airing and contact the network in support of the show. But apparently that did not generate much response and FOX was not swayed into changing its decision.
Would the Series have Worked?
While at first glance Virtuality seems to give us and odd mish-mash of elements–hard science fiction meets reality television meets the Star Trek holodecks meets murder mystery meets a conspiracy story arc–it ends up delivering a superior sci fi tale that had potential if it had continued to an ongoing series. And it had a pretty solid cast which included a pre-Game of Thrones Nikolaj Coster-Waldau along with James D’Arcy (Agent Carter), Clea DuVall (Carnivale, American Horror Story), Jose Pablo Cantillo (The Walking Dead), and more. And with Ronald Moore running it, Virtuality could have delivered an engaging, hard science fiction epic to rival has BSG reboot. However, FOX was definitely the wrong home for this one and even if it had been picked up to series it likely would have been cancelled after one season based on that network’s history with sci fi shows. This one would be a much better fit on one of the streaming services and would definitely be worth revisiting these days if Moore has the time.
Where Can You Watch It?
The pilot was released on DVD, though I believe it is now out of print (but still available from third-party sellers at a very economical price). It is not currently streaming on any of the major services, nor can you purchase it VOD. You might be able to find it on YouTube from time to time, though. It’s worth a look and similar in many aspects to the short-lived Defying Gravity that hit ABC’s schedule only two months after Virtuality aired (more on that one at this link).
Read about more Sci Fi TV pilots that did not fly at this link.
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