“Space: 1999” To Be Reimagined, Called “Space: 2099”
In a truly peculiar story, it is being reported via The Hollywood Reporter that ITV Studio America and HDFILMS are looking to bring back one of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s television properties from the 1970’s, and the series is Space:1999. Why is this story peculiar? Sit tight first…
Jace Hall, the president of HDFilms is reported to be in charge of this reboot and will also serve as the executive producer. Said Hall:
“Science fiction is a powerful format capable of visualizing the human condition in thought-provoking ways. While we are indeed re-imagining the franchise and bringing something new and relevant to today’s audiences. I feel strongly that some of the overall tones set by the original Space: 1999 television show represent an exciting platform to explore possibilities.”
The latest word we have received is that it’s in the development phase, and HDFILMS is trying to shop it around to different networks. Whether a single major network will get to run the series, or if it will be syndicated to a variety of channels is anyone’s guess.
I said this was a peculiar story. What makes it peculiar is while we here at TG2 Studios learned about this just last night, after doing some digging it was discovered that this news item broke back in 2012. So if this is an old story, why run it now? Because for some odd reason the original story from THR (as well as other news sources which reported on THR’s story at the time in 2012) is beginning to make the rounds again, and even now there are people who are commenting on it on different websites and social media, as if the story were totally brand new.
Does this mean that HDFILMS is actually going to go through with the remake attempt now? Does Space: 1999 need to be remade, or should it just stand on its own as a testament to the era in which it was produced?
Let us know what you think in the comment section below!
I am leaning towards optimism. For one thing, production values overall have gotten so much better than in the 70’s. Secondly, especially in the first season, some decent sci-fi ideas came up.If it were done with the sensibilities of say a “Firefly”, pr a “Doctor Who” it could be quite entertaining.
I loved the original series as a kid, but find it painful to watch today because of the implausible science. It’s not going to be easy to write a convincing story today that depicts the moon travelling to distant parts of the galaxy simply by being propelled by nuclear explosions (that didn’t totally fracture it). It would take 50-years for the moon to even get out of the solar system, then thousands of years to get to the nearest star. Even the wormhole idea is bogus (last I heard there were no portals in our solar system). It’s going to take some very clever writing to come up with something that doesn’t insult the modern viewers intelligence. Perhaps some sort of intervention from an advanced civilization to help it along. The stories will have to pass by several scientific advisers before production begins. Then there has to be the chemistry from the original series with interesting characters true to the original, and fans of the original series should have creative input or they will quickly lose that audience.
Thanks for the reply Ven… I understand your concerns regarding the implausible science. Much of the TV shows of yesteryear suffer from such things. Perhaps because of my age (I am an old fart) I’m able to look back on Space: 1999 with a sense of nostalgia and appreciate it for what was attempted in terms of story telling. Yes, much of what they did fell flat, but it was through the attempt that show really stood out for me.
If you’re curious, I’m also on another podcast called “Fusion Patrol” and we are just now starting to discuss Space: 1999 (we’re alternating episodes with discussions of “Blake’s 7”).
With the success of such “gritty” space shows like Battlestar Galactica, and the latest series to hit SyFy, “The Expanse,” it’s possible that a new series like Space: 2099 might take on a less polished look and try to go for a greater sense of realism. Only time will tell.
This story was first broke in early 2012. ITV cancelled the project at the end of 2015 while still in pre-production.
Cancelled? What’s your source?
I tried to do some digging on this, and all I could find so far was a website dedicated to Space: 2099. It does not appear to be a professional or corporate run website, and it does say the project appears to be dead. Their exact words are, “The last official announcement was May 2014, but there was no new information. In December 2015 we learned the project is no longer being pursued, but there has been no formal announcement.”
I am continuing to search, and am even looking at ways to contact ITV for a quote.
It’s a shame that they couldn’t even work on a pilot movie for their concept. I did enjoy Space 1999 in the seventies as a new series, however it’s stodgy start didn’t help it find a wide audience fast enough for ratings minded broadcasters. Some of the shows were outstanding and virtually all of the stories were creative…It seemed that the producers of the series were well aware of their problems and virtually all of the production qualities, were significantly updated for second season. Unfortunately this did not help the show gain a big enough audience in so short a time.
The best “test pilot” for this concept would be a theatrical release that could stand alone on its own and simultaneously spark the interest of the mainstream public in the original background series. It certainly has potential. I for one, would not like to see any changes in the physical structure of Moon Base Alpha or even the Eagles and other technology…Instead, I would like to see the logical projection of what it all would look like after more than half a century of travel through the Milky Way Galaxy…with possibly the presence of one or more of the former inhabitants while they are still available!
Truly they are throwing the baby out with the bathwater if they pulled the plug already!
ain’t gonna happen people
** Editor comment** We have pretty much determined that going in but, we just find it curious it is still making the rounds.