Scifi 411 - Upcoming TV Shows

Scifi 411 Index

General Info

Upcoming TV Shows

Coming Soon...Maybe
99 Stories
Boldly Going Nowhere
Caprica
Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas
Captain Drake
Castle

Children of Men
Cupid
Deputized
Dollhouse

Eleventh Hour
Fear Itself
Fringe
Gods Behaving Badly
Inseparable
Johnny Dynamite
Knight Rider
Life on Mars
The Listener
The Meant To Be’s
The Oaks
Merlin
Middleman
Miracle Man
My Own Worst Enemy
Mythological X
Patient 2344
Preacher
Riverview Towers
Revolution
Ripper
Rockville 2020
Sanctuary
Section 8
The Stranded
Stargate: Universe
Star Wars
Them
True Blood (formerly Southern Vampire)
True Believer
Virtuality

Warehouse 13
Wizard's First Rule

RIP: The shows that never made it.
317 The Series
3:52
The 36th Man
60 Minute Man
Alien Hunter
Almost
Alter Ego
Amy After Dark
Anonymous Rex
Aquaman (Mercy Reef)
Avery House
Babylon 5: The Lost Tales
Beauty & the Beast
The Bishop
Blink
Briar & Graves
The Bridge
The Butterfly Effect
Chameleon
The Corps
Danger Girl
Dark Shadows
Darkside
Dead Lawyers
Demons
Destroy All Humans!
Devil's Advocate
The Divide
Dresden Files
Earthlings
The Evil One
Fearless
Firebrand
Flash
Fly Girls
Found
Frankenstein
The Gift
Global Frequency
The Haskett Chronicles
Hellraiser
Heroes Anonymous
Ice Planet
Isla Du Sol
Jekyll
Johnny Midnight
Jumper
Kamelot
Kill Switch
Kyra
Left Behind
Lipshitz Saves the World
Lord of Illusions
The Lost Room (formerly Motel Man)
Masters of Science Fiction
Meet the Haunteds
Mermaid
Middletown
Midnighters
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
Night Thrasher
Nobody
NYPD 2069
OZ
Painkiller Jane
Pen and the Sword
Persons Unknown
Phenomenon
Polaris
Practical Magic (formerly Colderon and Sudbury)
Pretty Little Liars
The Prisoner
Raines (formerly Seeing Red)
The Robinsons: Lost in Space
Scarlett
Silver Lake
Sin City
Skrull Kill Krew
Snap
Spaceballs: Animated Series
Spellbound
Starcrossed
Still Life
Stoner
Suture Girl
Teen Wolf
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Those Who Walk in Darkness
Time Machine
Time Tunnel
Tomorrow's Child
Total Eclipse
Transylvania
The Triangle
Triangle
Twisted Tales
Ultra
Under Pressure
Untitled alternative history series
Untitled Adam Brody/Doug Liman and Dave Bartis' Hypnotic Project
Untitled Joel Schumacher/April Smith Project
Untitled Michael Douglas Project
Untitled Ridley Scott Project
Untitled Steven Spielberg World War II time-travel drama
Untitled Victor Fresco Sitcom Project
Untitled Warren Ellis black comedy/science fiction Project
Urban Arcana
The Way
Witch Doctor
Witch Hunter Robin
Zoe's List

Coming Soon...Maybe

99 Stories (AMC)

Production Status: Script ordered.

99 Stories is a sci-fi/horror thriller about a group of strangers invited to tour a newly constructed multipurpose 99-story building only to find themselves trapped in it. Fighting for their survival, they are at the mercy of a technological brain that electronically controls every element of the building. David Seltzer is writing the pilot and executive producing with James Middleton (The Sarah Connor Chronicles) and Steven Banks (Women in Law). (Last Updated: 10/26/07)

Boldly Going Nowhere (Fox)

Production Status: A pilot has been ordered. Five additional scripts have been commissioned beyond the pilot. The earliest the show would air (if given a green light) is midseason 2009.

A single-camera comedy set in the future about the mundane tales of a rogue intergalactic spaceship captain when he's not on a mission. Adam Stein created the show, which Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) will executive produce. (Last Updated: 03/14/08)

Caprica (SCIFI Channel)

Production Status: Two-hour backdoor pilot was ordered.

(Updated: 03/18/08) - Sci Fi Channel has greenlit production on Caprica, a two-hour Battlestar backdoor pilot prequel from executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick. Production is set to begin in Vancouver this spring. "We couldn't be more excited to see this long-anticipated project get off the ground. It's an amazing script, and, though clearly inspired by the Battlestar mythology, it is not just a pale spin-off. This is a smart, thought-provoking, emotional, and compelling character drama in its own right," said Mark Stern, Executive Vice President of Original Programming.

Caprica is set 50 years before Battlestar Galactica. The series will follow two rival families the Greystones and the Adamas as they grow, compete, and thrive in the vibrant world of the 12 Colonies. Enmeshed in the burgeoning technology of artificial intelligence and robotics that will eventually lead to the creation of the Cylons, the two houses go toe-to-toe. Caprica will deliver all of the passion, intrigue, political backbiting, family conflict and hardcore action that always leaves Galactica fans begging for more. (Sci Fi Channel press release)

The pilot will be directed by Jeff Reiner (Friday Night Lights).

(Updated: 04/28/06) - On April 25 the SCIFI Channel has announced its development of Caprica, a spin-off prequel of Battlestar Galactica. The spin-off comes from executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick, writer Remi Aubuchon (24) and NBC Universal Television Studio.

The description giving is..."Caprica would take place more than half a century before the events that play out in Battlestar Galactica. The people of the Twelve Colonies are at peace and living in a society not unlike our own, but where high technology has changed the lives of virtually everyone for the better."

"But a startling breakthrough in robotics is about to occur, one that will bring to life the age-old dream of marrying artificial intelligence with a mechanical body to create the first living robot: a Cylon. Following the lives of two families, the Graystones and the Adamas (the family of William Adama, who will one day become the commander of the Battlestar Galactica), Caprica will weave together corporate intrigue, techno-action and sexual politics into television's first science fiction family saga."

Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas (ABC)

ABC has picked up the fantasy pilot Captain Cook's Extraordinary Atlas. The drama project, described by from Warner Bros. TV as Harry Potter meets Pan's Labyrinth, centers on a young girl who finds a magical atlas that reveals a secret world underneath our world. Tom Wheeler will write and executive produce. (Last Updated: 03/28/08)

Castle (ABC)

Production Status: A pilot has been ordered.

Castle centers on a horror novelist who consults for the NYPD homicide department. Andrew Marlowe wrote the pilot and will executive-produce with Armyan Bernstein and Laurie Zaks. Rob Bowman (Day Break, X-Files) will direct the pilot. (Last Updated: 04/10/08)

Children of Men (?)

Production Status: Pilot in early development.

(Last Updated: 04/01/08) - Executive producer David Eick (Bionic Woman, Battlestar Galactica) is working on a pilot script for a proposed TV series based on Children of Men.

"It's really taking root more in the origins of the novels in that it will focus on the cultural movement in which young people become the society's utter focus," Eick said in an interview at Sci Fi Channel's upfront presentation to advertisers in New York on March 18. "Much like our culture, whenever Lindsay Lohan does something [and] it becomes the headline of every news show, it's about how, when you don't have a responsibility to the next generation and you're free to do whatever you want, where do you draw the line?"

Cupid (ABC)

Production Status: A cast-contingent pilot has been ordered.

(Updated: 03/14/08) - Cupid is Rob Thomas's (creator of Veronica Mars) "reinvention" of the short-lived 1998-99 ABC dramedy series about a man who thinks he's been sent to earth by Zeus to help unite 100 romantically challenged couples.

Deputized (Sci Fi Channel)

Production Status: A two-hour pilot has been ordered.

This dramedy is about an "average Joe" who suddenly finds himself possessing special abilities after being accidentally fitted with an alien exoskeleton that cannot be removed. He is then enlisted to serve on the inter-galactic police force that patrols the universe. The pilot is written by Joe Gazzam. (Last Updated: 03/18/08)

Dollhouse (Fox)

Production Status: A pilot was ordered and there is a blind seven-episode commitment (with a license fee of $1.5-$2 million per installment).

Joss Whedon (Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Serenity) returns to television with Dollhouse. Starring Eliza Dushku (Tru Calling, Buffy The Vampire Slayer), the series follows a top-secret world of people programmed with different personalities, abilities and memories depending on their mission. The "Dollhouse" is a futuristic dorm/lab where the agents have their memories wiped, reducing them to a child-like mental state. Dushku plays Echo an agent who slowly develops self-awareness. The rest of the cast includes the people who run the "dollhouse", two other "dolls," and a federal agent investigating the urban myth about the dolls.

Whedon will executive produce and Dushku will serve as producer.

(Updated: 03/27/08) - Tahmoh Penikett (Battlestar Galactica), Fran Kranz (Welcome to the Captain), Dichen Lachman and Enver Gjokaj have joined the cast.

Penikett will play Paul Smith: "30s, any ethnicity, good-looks hardened by a cynical distaste for most of humanity. An FBI field agent, he's been chasing the urban myth of the Dollhouse long enough to have lost any shot at promotion. Becomes obsessed with, and twisted romantic foil for, Echo."

Kranz will play Topher Brink: "20's, any ethnicity, genius programmer who's articulate, nerdily attractive and blithely amoral. He's responsible for imprinting the dolls - and making sure they stay unaware of anything. Is fascinated by the science and kind of digging the illegality. Fun to be around, but might not be remotely trustworthy."

Lachman will play Sierra: "20's, Asian or any ethnicity - certainly not Caucasian. Strikingly beautiful. A Doll like Echo, she has every personality in the world but her own. Is not as self-aware as Echo, but is instinctively drawn to her as a friend."

Gjokaj will play Victor: "20's, any ethnicity, handsome and fit. A Doll, and the other closest thing to a friend Echo has. Childlike when he's inactive, and everything from Errol Flynn to (young) DeNiro when he's active."

(Updated: 02/28/08) - Women's Murder Club alums Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain have reportedly joined the cast.

Eleventh Hour (CBS)

Production Status: A pilot (at $4 million) has been ordered, with a potential 12 additional episodes.

This drama revolves around a special science adviser to the government who, with his feisty female bodyguard in tow, saves people from the worst abuses of science. Jerry Bruckheimer is adapting this Patrick Stewart-led U.K. series into a U.S. version for CBS. British actor Rufus Sewell (John Adams) will star as Jacob Hood, the special science adviser, a role played by Patrick Stewart in the U.K. version. Marley Shelton (Grindhouse) stars as Rachel Young, Hood's female bodyguard. Sleeper Cell creators Cyrus Voris and Ethan Reiff are rumored to be potential showrunners. Mick Davis (The Invisible) will write the pilot and Danny Cannon (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation) will direct. They will executive produce with Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman and Granada International Media's Robert Green. (Last Updated: 04/01/08)

Fear Itself (NBC)

Production Status: A 13 episode order.

A new horror anthology series from Lionsgate in association with Industry Entertainment with a large list of well known directors, actors and writers.

Directors signed on include John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), Darren Bousman (Saw II, Saw III and Saw IV), Ronny Yu (Freddy vs. Jason, Bride of Chucky), Brad Anderson (The Machinist), Breck Eisner (upcoming Universal Pictures film Creature from the Black Lagoon), Mary Harron (American Psycho), Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator), and Ernest Dickerson (NBC's Heroes). Brandon Routh, Shiri Appleby, Elisabeth Moss, Cynthia Watros, Eric Roberts, John Billingsley, Russell Hornsby, Pablo Schreiber, Stephen Lee, Stephen R. Hart, Jack Noseworthy and Larry Gilliard Jr. have all been cast in episodes. Writers include Joe Gangemi, Steve Niles, Dan Knauf, Lem Dobbs, Matt Venne, Richard Chizmar & Johnathan Schaech, Victor Salva, Mick Garris, Drew McWeeny & Scott Swan, Kelly Kennemer and Max Landis. (Last Updated: 03/05/08)

Fringe (Fox)

Production Status: The two-hour pilot is complete.

A supernatural drama that centers on a young female FBI agent named Olivia Warren (Anna Torv) who, forced to confront the spread of powerful and unexplained phenomena, must work with Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) and his institutionalized scientist father Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble) whose life's work may be at the center of the coming storm. Peter is a high-school dropout with an IQ of 190 and a misfit who is trying to erase a gambling debt. Also signed on is Blair Brown who plays Nina Cord, a 16-year veteran at Prometheus Corp., a cutting-edge research facility. Jasika Nicole is playing the recurring role of Astrid Farnsworth, a stunning federal assistant. Lance Reddick (The Wire) plays Phillip Broyles, a special agent for Homeland Security who heads the special Fringe division. Kirk Acevedo (The Black Donnellys) is playing Charlie Francis, a good-natured FBI agent and Mark Valley (Boston Legal) will play John Scott, another agent with whom Warren is involved with. Jeff Pinkner (October Road) will executive producer with J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk and co-creators Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. - (Last Updated: 04/10/08)

Johnny Dynamite (?)

Production Status: A pilot has been ordered.

Dick Wolf (Law & Order) is teaming with director D.J. Caruso (Disturbia) and writer J.H. Wyman (Keen Eddie) to create this comic-book-style TV drama. The series is based on the Johnny Dynamite graphic novel by Max Allan Collins (Road to Perdition). The pilot will use the same green-screen technology used in the movie 300, according to Variety.

Ex-cop Dynamite travels to Las Vegas in search of his missing girlfriend, only to discover that Satan is living there, buying and selling souls. Dynamite ends up getting involved in the lives of those unfortunate souls who've been touched by the devil. (Last Updated: 10/20/07)

Life on Mars (ABC)

Production Status: A pilot has been ordered.

David E. Kelley is set to write and executive-produce the pilot for Life on Mars. This proposed series is a time-travel crime drama based on the BBC's 2006 drama by the same name. The BBC show starred John Simm as a 21st-century detective investigating a serial killer who, following a car crash, mysteriously finds himself working as a cop in the 1970s. In this American version detective Sam Tyler (played by Men in Tree's Jason O'Mara), following a car crash, is transported back to 1972 after his girlfriend is kidnapped.

(Updated: 08/17/07) - Colm Meaney (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) and Lenny Clarke (Rescue Me) are in final negotiations to join the cast. Meaney will play Gene Hunt, the gruff, funny head of the homicide unit in 1972 who often clashes violently with Sam. Clarke's plays a character named George. The pair join the previously cast Rachelle Lefevre who plays Annie Cartright. Thomas Schlamme is directing the pilot and the script is written by creator David E. Kelley. Kelley will executive produce for 20th Century Fox Television alongside Kudos Productions's Stephen Garrett and Jane Featherstone.

Merlin (NBC)

Production Status: Thirteen episodes have been ordered.

(from NBC's press release) - Merlin brings to life a new legend for a modern audience. Merlin is an exciting, hour-long fantasy series set in the mythic city of Camelot -- but inspired by 21st Century storytelling. Before Merlin and Arthur became legends, they were ambitious young men looking for adventure, hoping to live up to their family's expectations, discovering love and finding their own true destiny, making mistakes along the way. The innovative, action-packed drama has cross-generational appeal and paints a picture of Merlin and Arthur's early life that audiences have never witnessed before. Colin Morgan (Doctor Who) stars as Merlin and Bradley James (Lewis) stars as Arthur. Anthony Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Richard Wilson (A Passage to India), Angel Coulby (Magicians) and Katie McGrath (The Tudors) also star. A FremantleMedia Enterprises distribution of a Shine production for BBC. (Last Updated: 04/02/08)

Middleman (ABC Family)

Production Status: At least six episodes have been ordered.

This drama stars Natalie Morales as Wendy Watson a twenty something struggling artist who's recruited by a secret agency to fight comic book-type villains alongside The Middleman (Matt Keeslar), a sci-fi superhero who serves as her guide. This series is based on a comic book written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach and published by Viper Comics. (Last Updated: 02/08/08)

Mythological X (CBS)

Production Status: A pilot has been ordered.

Mythological X is a supernatural-tinged drama about a woman who, after learning from a psychic that she already has dated the man she's supposed to marry, revisits all her past relationships in the hopes of finding him. Diane Ruggiero (Veronica Mars) wrote the script and Timothy Busfield Lipstick Jungle will direct the pilot. Ruggiero and Timothy Busfield will executive produce the series. The series is based on the Israeli series of the same name.

(Updated: 04/01/08) - Elizabeth Reaser Grey's Anatomy has signed on to play the lead role. Her character, Michaela (who may be renamed Annabel), is: "30-35, a quick-witted, sexy, floral shop owner whose life is changed when a tarot card reader informs her that she must marry one of her ex-boyfriends within a year or she will remain single forever. Michaela is combination earth mother/sex kitten with a little Lucille Ball thrown in for good measure. Part ball-buster, part nurturer, she is a charismatic 'girl next door' who easily makes the transition from being 'one of the guys' to seducer. She's a romantic at heart but her talent for snark and sarcasm sometimes promotes a different perception."

(Updated: 03/27/08) - Rachel Boston will play Denise: "26-32. Michaela's little sister and a bundle of sass and energy. She's fiercely loyal to her older sister, defending her at every turn, mostly when it's unnecessary. She's a professional dancer of the non-exotic variety. She's the girl who had posters of ballet shoes on her walls throughout her youth then went away to college to fully reinforce the negative stereotype of partying, promiscuous dance majors. She makes her living doing videos and commercials but the ageist industry is starting to shun her. She is about to get married to her long-term boyfriend."

Ripper (BBC-2)

A planned spin-off series from Buffy the Vampire Slayer that would center on Rupert "Ripper" Giles, formerly Buffy Summers' Watcher, fighting evil in England. This series is on hiatus, but Joss Whedon assured fans that Ripper is not cancelled, but it's the farthest project from his mind at the moment.

Stargate Universe (Sci Fi Channel?)

Production Status:Was pitched to Sci Fi Channel, but has been put on hold since the writer's strike.

(Last Updated: 04/10/08) - This proposed spin-off is in the concept stage and being developed by Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper (Stargate Atlantis). The writers strike, the potential high cost and the busy workload has caused the series to be delayed. The creators are not sure if they want to make it now or wait until Stargate Atlantis has ended.

"The idea of Stargate Universe is that it is set on a ship that was part of an Ancient experiment that was set in motion probably millions of years ago -- one that they never saw to fruition, but that we can," Wright told GateWorld. "They got busy with the whole ascension thing."

The experiment is... "to send a ship across the universe, and to send one ahead of it to seed the galaxies with Stargates, and that they would one day use the ninth chevron to get there [to the ship]. And that's what Stargate Universe is."

Star Wars (?)

(10/11/05) - Rick McCallum, producer of the recent Star Wars films, spoke to Now Playing Magazine about the two upcoming Star Wars TV series. "The live-action television series is something we're planning for just at the beginning of 2007," McCallum said. "We're just starting to interview writers and trying to really figure out which direction [to go]."

"It is going to be much darker, much grittier. It's going to be character-based. [Lucas] envisions somewhere like 100 hours, [set] between Episode III and Episode IV, with a lot of characters that we haven't met, but [who] have been developed in some of the novels and other things. We're really excited about that, because I think finally we're going to have the opportunity to answer everybody's questions once and for all by the time we finish the series."

McCallum added that the live-action series is likely to be based in Sydney, Australia, and will be filmed in hi-def, while the animated series is already in production at Skywalker Ranch. "The animation is being done as we speak," he told the magazine. "It's starting to prep. That's being done here at the Ranch. A lot of the effects are being done in Singapore. ... I think it's just now in the conceptual work and script work [phase]. I think George is trying to get 13 scripts done first before we really start to get into the pipeline of it. But that'll start happening probably at the end of March."

(9/19/05) - According to IGN FilmForce, Lucasfilm is seeking screenwriters for its planned Star Wars TV series.

The series will be written at the secluded Skywalker Ranch, the site reported. Work will commence this January. Lucas and his colleague Rick McCallum will produce the still-untitled show. The show is slated to run 50 hours and will be a mixture of live-action and computer animation. Principal photography is set to begin in 2007, with filming to take place in Australia. The show will reportedly take place after the Empire has risen to power.

(August 2005) - According to Variety, George Lucas told a conference that he will turn his attentions more to television projects, including two Star Wars-themed series. "My life's too short to become a film studio," he reportedly said.

Lucas added: "Lucasfilm is going more into television, but it's not a vision I'm running, either as executive producer or by laying out the groundwork."

The first series is a 3-D animated Clone Wars series to be made at Lucas Animation's Singapore facility. In his Star Wars live-action series, "We're going do something that would normally cost [$20 million-$30 million] and try to do it for $1 million." Lucas said the series will be shot on a Sony digital camera system that anyone can buy at an electronics store.

(April 2005) - At the more recent "Star Wars Celebration III" convention in Indianapolis, Lucas talked about the Star Wars television plans for the future. Lucas said that there are currently two TV series in development: a half hour 3-D computer animated series and a live action series starring supporting characters featured in the movies. Both shows will take place during the period between the end of Star Wars: Episode III--Revenge of the Sith and the beginning of Star Wars: Episode IV--A New Hope.

Production on the live action series should begin in about a year and unlike other live action shows, all the scripts for every episode will be written first and then shooting will happen in one big block. George Lucas will probably work on the pilot. Based on this this timetable, it should start airing sometime in 2007.

(Early 2005) - At Lucasfilm and Fox Home Entertainment's roll-out of the upcoming "Star Wars Trilogy" DVD set, Lucasfilm's Jim Ward confirmed that a "Star Wars" TV series is on the way in the near future.

There have been rumors circulating on the web that Kevin Smith may be asked to be an executive producer. The IESB has reported that Kevin Smith will write and direct at least three episodes of live-action Star Wars TV series.

According to ComingSoon.net, 'Dian' sent in this information heard on TV in Australia:

"I was just watching the news over here in Australia and they said that the TV series will be shot in Australia and a deal will be done this June. The show will be one hundred episodes long and a hour each."

According to USA Today, George Lucas said that fan-favorite villain Boba Fett may be included in the upcoming live-action Star Wars series.

IESB posted the following email from a tipster on December, 23 2004:

There has been plenty of plans for future re-assignments and plenty of moving around inside the "Ranch", they have already started making room for the offices that will handle the TV show. I am not quite sure if the bulk of the work will be done here or if they will be done over at the Presidio. Smith is definitely the top choice and I have been told that he has been staying very busy with negotiations before he starts up with his Clerks sequel. There was some up here that claim that he was spotted up here a few weeks ago, I didn't see him.

The TV show will go full speed as soon as Sith is released by that time Kevin should be done with most of his work on Clerks 2. Your scooper that sent you the info on Hamill is right, they are hoping to get Mark to come back and be like the mentor of the new Jedi Knights or something. I am trying to pin point the time frame and if they are expected to keep the EU continuity. I personally doubt that EU storylines will be explored, they might be mentioned but from what I understand Kevin and George want fresh new storylines. I was told about a possible twist to show, even though it's to take place after Return of the Jedi a few ILMers have been talking about showing some flashback sequences via Holocron- type technology.

I was also told that the public should expect an official announcement within a few months. Part of not releasing any information on the show is because News Corp. [20th Century Fox] is hoping to be involved with the distribution of the show. There has also been some rumblings coming from the Sci-Fi Channel hoping to land the domestic distribution but I doubt that will happen. One other thing, Sith is turning up nicely.

Them (Fox)

Production Status: A pilot has been ordered.

( from FOX's press release) - Executive producers Jonathan Mostow (Breakdown, Terminator 3), David Eick (Battlestar Galactica) and John McNamara (Profit, Eyes) deliver THEM, a revolutionary new drama about a sleeper cell operating in the everyday environs of modern-day Los Angeles a sleeper cell from another world. They might be the friendly new neighbors next door or the office workers carpooling alongside you on the freeway. But they are nothing like us. They arrive emotionless, follow orders without question, and none of them knows the true nature of their mission on Earth. What a few of them do know, however, is that something unexpected has happened: Our emotions affect them like a dangerous, uncontrollable virus. Once indulged, any feelings they have toward us can suddenly shatter their carefully codified order.

CAIN JOHNSON (James D'Arcy, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World) is the cell's vigilant, determined Enforcer, tasked with investigating agents who "go rogue." A new arrival, he struggles to understand our strange human ways, such as why we give each other dead foliage to express tenderness. When cell agent Adam Bridges betrays his own kind because of his love for a human woman, Cain is ordered to hunt him down. In the process, while learning more about his prey and, eventually, himself, Cain begins to question the true purpose of his cell's mysterious mission on Earth is it one of mercy, or domination? And what role does he actually play in it?

EZEKIAL SMITS (Reg Rogers, Runaway Bride) is the cell's Assimilator, a kind of bureaucratic shrink who orients new arrivals to this world, then monitors their progress and reports anyone he deems "unstable." Yet he himself has a secret addiction. An officious, volatile taskmaster, Smits is also responsible for naming each new agent as he or she assumes human form. For inspiration, he draws from two of this planet's most enduring publications: the Bible and TV Guide.

URIAH SELLECK (Steve Toussaint, The Knock/UK), the silkily domineering Sector Chief, rules by fear and intimidation. The ambitious TARA SPADER (Freya Stafford, White Collar Blue) is in charge of media disinformation; she'll follow any order Uriah gives, as long as it assures her advancement within the cell. Naomi Tyler Moore is Tara's counterpart and total opposite, as seductive as she is free-spirited, using her powerful sexuality to gather information on unsuspecting human males. But as Cain soon learns, humans aren't the only ones vulnerable to Naomi's appeal.

Meanwhile, DONNA SHAW (Rachel Nichols, Alias), the ordinary human woman with whom Adam has fallen in love as has her friend FLOYD GRUNWALD (Ben Feldman, Living with Fran) triggers a deadly manhunt when it appears she might be the key to the cell's overall mission.

Directed by Jonathan Mostow, this CBS Paramount Network Television and Circle of Confusion production is a mind-bending thriller about the collision of love, loyalty, fear, betrayal and what it means to be truly human.

True Blood (HBO)

Production Status: The series should premiere on HBO this fall rather than the summer due to last fall's writers' strike.

Alan Ball (Six Feet Under) is developing a new series based on Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire book series. HBO has given this series a green light. The hourlong pilot will be written and directed by Alan Ball.

The Southern Vampire book series chronicles the world of humans and monsters in contemporary rural Louisiana, particularly vampires, thanks to a synthetic blood formula that allows them to roam far from their coffins. The series centers on a love story between a vampire, Bill (Stephen Moyer), and Sookie (Anna Paquin), a waitress who can read people's minds. Alexander Skarsgard (Generation Kill) will play a vampire/Viking who has been alive for more than a thousand years. Brook Kerr, Carrie Preston, Michael Raymond-James, Ryan Kwanten and Sam Trammell also star.(Last Updated: 04/14/08)

Virtuality (Fox)

Production Status: A two-hour backdoor pilot has been ordered.

(Last Updated: 04/14/08) - Virtuality is about 12 crew members on board the starship Phaeton. They are on a 10-year voyage to explore a distant solar system. To help the crew tolerate such a long trip and keep their minds occupied, NASA equipped the ship with advanced virtual-reality modules. This allows them to assume adventurous identities and go to any place they want. Things go well until a mysterious bug is found in the system. Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor (Battlestar Galactica) wrote the pilot and will executive produce with Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun.

Warehouse 13 (SciFi Channel)

Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica) and writer Brent Mote are developing this supernatural series for the Scifi Channel. Warehouse 13 centers on a pair of government officials that are banished to a storage facility in North Dakota in which every item has a supernatural or fantastical backstory. (Last Updated: 12/20/05)

RIP: The shows that never made it.

317 The Series

"On the eve of the certain destruction of the Earth, under the guise of an impossible mission to destroy an asteroid of immense proportions, the decision is made to send five hundred groups of six children each out into the galaxy toward planets suspected of being able to sustain human life. Each group knows that after their thousand-year journey, there will be no planet Earth to which they might someday return. This then is the saga of group #317 who, after being roused from ten centuries in hypersleep, discover they've been awakened seventy-five years too soon. Now, as they continue toward their destination, they must try to keep their situation from getting out of hand." (Last Updated: 09/28/05)

See the official website here.

3:52 (SCIFI Channel)

"From distinguished television writer/producer John Tinker (Judging Amy, The Practice), takes place in the wake of the sudden disappearance of 2 billion people from the face of the Earth. The series, named for the time of the vanishing, will be told from the point of view of a small Maryland town." (The description given by the SCIFI Channel) (Last Updated: 04/14/05)

Alien Hunter (SCIFI Channel)

Production Status: ?

A series about a hunter and his crew dedicated to saving the galaxy's most endangered and dangerous animals.

Alter Ego (FOX)

Based on the comic book Alias created by Brian Michael Bendis and published by Marvel Comics under the MAX imprint for mature audience comic books. The comic book centered on Jessica Jones, the former superhero turned private investigator. The title was changed to Alter Ego due to the already existing ABC series titled Alias.

A pilot was written by Brian Michael Bendis and FOX is looking for a showrunner. The pilot roughly covers the first story arc of the Alias comic book series. The story arc involved Jessica searching for a missing woman only to get caught up in a conspiracy involving Captain America and the president of the United States.

"Bendis wrote the pilot, and it's awesome," producer Ari Arad told Wizard magazine. "We're just trying to figure out when we’re going to shoot it or when we’re going to get picked up. Bendis nailed it." (Last Updated: 01/10/06)

Anonymous Rex (SciFi Channel)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, SCI FI Channel has green-lighted a two-hour TV movie and backdoor pilot for Anonymous Rex, based on Eric Garcia's series of books. And SCI FI has reportedly commissioned two more scripts from the Fox TV Studios-produced project. Julian Jarrold is set to direct the pilot from a script written by Joe Menosky (Star Trek: Voyager), based on the second book in the series, Casual Rex. Production is set to begin in March.

The Rex novels are comedic mystery stories that center on Vincent Rubio, a high-tech private investigator. Vincent is, along with hundreds of others on Earth, in fact a dinosaur. Dinosaurs have evolved into 6-foot beings and have integrated themselves into modern society by disguising themselves as humans.

The telefilm/backdoor pilot will premiere Saturday, November 13 at 9:00/8:00c. (Last Updated: 10/18/04)

Aquaman / Mercy Reef (CW)

Production Status: The CW has made a pilot commitment and casting has begun. The pilot will shoot in March, probably in Miami.

(07/13/06) - According to Wizard Universe, Al Gough hopes to make the failed pilot available for the public. "We're working on a way to get the pilot out there," Gough said. "That's sort of all I can say at the moment. Whether it's some sort of addition on season six of 'Smallville' or not -- we're really proud of the pilot. We'd love for the fans to get a chance to see it. The implication when a network doesn't pick up a show is that the pilot sucks and that's not the case. It's not a perfect pilot by any stretch of the imagination. There are other reasons -- which are a mystery to us -- as to why The CW didn't pick it up. I think it definitely puts Aquaman in a modern context and he's not lame. It's a shame because it would have been a really fun series."

(06/20/06) - Televisionary has a review for the pilot.

(05/18/06) - The CW revealed its fall schedule and Aquaman wasn't on it (tentatively called The Reef: The Legend of Aquaman). It was confirmed with CW that the show was not picked up.

(05/11/06) - According to Variety, this series may not be a certainty for the CW network. Ultra is being considered instead.

(04/06/06) - Recently the Homestead Air Reserve Base was used as a set for this upcoming series. The base posted photos showing what happened. The Air Force also posted an article about the shoot.

Movieweb has posted quotes from actor Lou Diamond Phillips about the series. "The funny thing about the Aquaman project is that there's so much buzz about it already. Which is amazing, I mean you don't usually get that with a pilot, because they're sort of sight unseen. With the announcement that Al Gough and Miles Millar were doing this, basically spinning off of Smallville, but not really, it is it's own creature if you will, there was a lot of speculation and a lot of buzz. I can say just having been on the set," Phillips said, "having been with Ving and Justin Hartley, who is amazing and I think is gonna blow up, we nailed it, man. It was a wonderful script and it was so much enthusiasm and so much heart, and I have to say an incredible amount of support. From the network, from the studio and I think everybody had high hopes for it."

(03/15/06) - According to AquamanTV.com, Lou Diamond Phillips (Wolf Lake, The Triangle, Route 666) will play Coast Guard officer Tom Curry, father to Arthur Curry.

According to Miami Today, the pilot began shooting this week in the Miami area. Scenes include a shot at Greenwich Studios, with exterior footage shot in Coconut Grove.

(03/03/06) - According to Aquaman TV, Denise Quiñones (Andrea from Smallville's "Vengeance" episode) has been cast in the role of Rachel, a young woman who is a potential love interest for A.C. Adrianne Palicki ("Kara" on Smallville) will play a "siren." Daniella Wolters has been cast as A.C.'s Atlantean mother, Atlanna. Graham Bentz will play a young A.C. in flashback sequences.

(02/24/06) - According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Aquaman series has a new actor playing Arthur Curry (aka Aquaman). Justin Hartley (Passions) will replace the previously announced Will Toale. Apparently the recast was a result of the merger of UPN and The WB into The CW.

"Will is a talented actor with a promising career, and we hope to work with him in the future," a CW spokesman told the trade paper. "We have made the decision to go in a different direction with the Aquaman role and wish him the best of luck in all of his endeavors."

According to Variety, Ving Rhames (Mission: Impossible III) will play McCaffery, a lighthouse keeper who serves as mentor to A.C. Curry. Denise Quinones will play Navy fighter pilot Rachel Starling, a potential love interest for Curry.

(02/08/06) - According to the folks at Aquaman TV, there are two possible titles for the upcoming show: "Tempest Key" and "Mercy Reef."

(01/25/06) - In a recent article at Reuters.com the author discusses the ramifications for proposed Fall 2006 shows now that WB and UPN have announced their merger into the CW Network. In it the author says “...while WB has given the go-ahead to ‘Aquaman,’ a show based on the DC Comics character, and ‘Cult,’ with the leads in both projects already cast.” So, it looks like Aquaman is safe and confirmed for more episodes beyond the pilot.

(01/09/06) - According to Variety, after searching for three months, the WB has chosen an actor to play Arthur Curry (aka Aquaman). Who is he? He is 28-year-old newcomer Will Toale. Toale is a Florida-born former model that played a supporting role in A Streetcar Named Desire at Broadway's Roundabout Theater.

(11/21/05) - Here is the casting call:

[RACHEL STARLING - SERIES REGULAR] 18-24 years old. Rachel is a natural beauty with a radiant face and the perfectly toned body of an athlete. She has a sharp mind and a killer sense of humor. But if you look beyond her warm smile, you'll find something haunted about her. A drowning accident as a teenager has scarred her. While enjoying a "Semester at Sea", the boat capsized and she was stuck below deck. Although she blacked out, that last thing she remembers is being pulled free by a mysterious young boy wearing a seahorse necklace. Rachel comes from a well-heeled New York family. Her father was a successful newspaper editor but he died when she was 14. She took his death very hard and decided to embark on the "Semester at Sea" as a way of getting over her grief. Her relationship with her mother, an award winning Broadway playwright, has remained strained. Her mother is an ultra liberal and doesn't approve of her joining the military. When she was selected to train at the Liberty Key West Naval Air Station, she achieved her dream of becoming a Top Gun, but she also has to face the fear of returning to the same area as her boating accident. Although there is a mutual attraction between Rachel and A.C., their relationship is complicated by the fact that Rachel is secretly engaged to another naval trainee, JESSE HICKS. Rachel finds herself torn between the safety and security that Jesse offers and the danger and mystery that seem to define A.C.

[JESSE HICKS - SERIES REGULAR] 18-24 years old. He's an incredibly good-looking, Top Gun hot shot. Jesse grew up in suburban Texas and was a high school football star. His father is a decorated three star General who is currently serving in Iraq. Jesse never considered any other career; he always knew he was destined to fight for his country. He fell in love with Rachel the very first time he saw her. Defying the rules, they embarked on a passionate affair. Jesse proposed a few weeks before the pilot episode and Rachel accepted his offer. They have to keep their relationship secret or face possible expulsion from the Top Gun program. Highly ambitious and competitive, Jesse is the kind of guy who wins at any cost. He is also reckless and sometimes dangerously aggressive.

[EVA TORRES - SERIES REGULAR] 18-24 years old. A fiery Cuban beauty. Eva hasn't exactly had an easy life. When she was six she fled Cuba with her family on a raft, which sank a hundred miles off the Florida coast in a devastating storm. She was the sole survivor. Although she was rescued she has struggled to make a life for herself in America and was bounced from foster family to foster family. It was only when she finally turned 18 that she finally felt free. She came down to the Keys for a short break and never left. She manages a local dive shop, "The Old Man and The Sea" and counts A.C. as one of her best friends. Although they are from wildly different backgrounds they both felt an instant connection. Independent, sarcastic, strong-willed, Eva isn't afraid to express her opinion, even when no one's asking for it.

[MCCAFFERY - SERIES REGULAR] Star Name preferred. It's difficult to say how old McCaffery is. If you were to look at him, you'd probably guess 60ish. But you'd be way off. That's because McCaffery is from Atlantis. Since coming to the surface world, McCaffery has led a largely reclusive life as the lighthouse keeper at Atlas Point. He has watched A.C. grow up from afar, but always knew that one day their lives would intersect. This encounter leads to a long lasting friendship. McCaffery takes A.C. under his wing and explains not only his true origin but also his destiny. He is Obi Wan to A.C.'s Luke Skywalker. He is the voice of wisdom and experience who acts as a guide and mentor to the often hotheaded A.C. McCaffery is always bailing A.C. out of trouble and is someone A.C. can turn to when it comes to all things nautical. Having grown up underwater, McCaffery knows all the myths and legends of the ocean. He's also familiar with the creatures, both known and unknown to man, that inhabit the ocean's dark waters. Highly intelligent and fiercely loyal, McCaffery possesses an acerbic wit and doesn't suffer fools lightly.

[TOM CURRY - SERIES REGULAR] Late 30s to early 40s, A.C.'s stepfather. He was born and raised in Chicago but fell in love with Keys while he was a student at the University of Miami. He was an outstanding athlete and was a member of the gold medal winning US Water Polo team at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. He joined the Coast Guard in 1986 and has made a good career out of it, rising to the rank of Captain. While he was still a rookie Coast Guard his life took a dramatic turn. While out on a routine night patrol he came across three people bobbing in shark-infested waters -- a woman, a baby and an old man. There was no sign of a boat or plane and the water was mirror still. When he got them back to land he discovered they had no ID and nowhere to go. Taking pity on them, Tom took them home. Tom quickly became enchanted with the beautiful woman, ATLANNA, and her baby son ORIN. Within a year Tom and Atlanna were married and Tom adopted her baby son as his own. They renamed the boy ARTHUR. The old man, McCAFFERY, took a job as the Atlas Point Lighthouse keeper, a position he still holds to this day. As Arthur grew up, Atlanna made Tom promise not to tell him about her connection to McCaffery. He reluctantly agreed.

(11/14/05) - Variety has confirmed that the WB is developing a prime-time TV series based on the DC Comics superhero Aquaman. Producers Al Gough and Miles Millar (Smallville, Spider-Man 2) create and executive-produce this as-yet-untitled action drama series about a twenty something Arthur Curry, aka Aquaman. Greg Beeman (Smallville) will direct the pilot. The series will not be called Aquaman and the word will never be mentioned. This series reportedly won't be an actual Smallville spin-off. Alan Ritchson, the actor who played Curry on Smallville, will not play the role for the series.

"He did a wonderful job on the show, but this is going to be a different version of the 'Aquaman' legend," Gough told Variety . The pilot "will be different than what you saw on Smallville. That was our out-of-town trial version."

The casting call is: "Arthur Curry (aka Aquaman): 18-24 years old. Blond or light brown hair, drop dead handsome with an incredible swimmer's body...SERIES REGULAR"

Curry will have some powers, breathing underwater and super-strength underwater, but is only beginning to understand them. Gough and Millar had been considered a Lois Lane series, but "this was the first idea where we really thought we had a franchise, where we could see 100 episodes," Millar said. Millar also told Variety that they hope to create "a grounded version of the Aquaman mythology," focusing on an Arthur Curry, who "knows what he wants to do with his life, which is protect the oceans."

"There's a mystery surrounding the disappearance of (Curry's) mother and the Bermuda Triangle," Gough told Variety. He added that other weird occurrences related to the Triangle will provide many of the plotlines and Curry will be living with his adopted father.

(11/10/05) - Ever since Aquaman appeared on Smallville with great ratings, there has been a rumor that the WB is working on an Aquaman spin-off. Although vague, TV Guide did say this when asked: "Those rumors you heard about a possible Aquaman spin-off? All true."

Beauty & the Beast (UPN)

Production Status: Unknown

It’s a new “Beauty and the Beast”' series with producer Paul Junger Witt from the original series. A script commitment has been given. There is no word if any of the regular cast of the original will return. Nothing new since June 2002.

The Bishop (SCIFI Channel)

This possible one-hour drama is from executive producers Freddie Prinze Jr. and Conrad Jackson. The series revolves around a young slacker whose charmed life is disrupted when he discovers that he has a supernatural gift, and he goes on a quest to uncover his secret past. This show is from Brillstein-Grey Television. (Last Updated: 05/05/06)

Blink (SCIFI Channel)

This proposed series is from executive producers Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) and Michael Forman and writer Irving Belateche. "The series asks the question: What would happen if you could freeze that moment in time when something you do or a decision you make changes your life forever? A group of Afterlife investigators try to help those about to make the wrong choice, in the blink of an eye before destiny is sealed forever." This series comes from NBC Universal Television Studio and Big Cattle Productions. (Last Updated: 05/05/06)

Briar & Graves (FOX)

Elizabeth Rohm (Angel) and Charles Mesure (Boogeyman) will play the title roles in the pilot. Mesure plays a hard-living priest who partners with a doctor (played by Rohm) to investigate unexplained religious phenomena. Paul Scheuring (A Man Apart) is writing and executive producing the pilot with Dawn Parouse and Marty Adelstein.

Nothing new on whether the show will be picked up this Fall. Perhaps Mid-Season? Here is a casting notice that details the roles in the pilot.

Charles Mesure as Father Malachi Briar: "30-40. Handsome in a kind of used-up way, like he's packed a dozen lifetimes of boozing, brawling and Marlboros into his short 33 year tenure here on earth, a bit weary and cynical, Briar is an excommunicated Catholic priest who was involved in an exorcism that went bad. Impassioned, knowledgeable, fearless, devoted to the fight between Good and Evil (which to him comes down to God and the Devil), Briar is happy to help Laurie Graves with her brother, Rick, whom Briar instantly recognizes as being in the throes of possession. Nonjudgmental but appreciative of Laurie's fact-based deductions (and her ties with Police Captain Marco Settembrini), Briar ultimately can do nothing for Rick, but as he moves on to another case, he clearly welcomes Laurie's input."

Elizabeth Rohm as Dr. Laurie Graves: "28-34. A surgeon in Boston, Laurie is a woman of science, who later opens her mind to religious possibilities. Respected and liked at work, Laurie is very concerned about her artist brother Rick, who recently suffered the loss of his wife and infant son in a car accident while he was driving; Rick appears to be suffering a mental breakdown with bizarre religious overtones or at least, that's the way it seems to Laurie. Believing that it might placate Rick's tortured request for a priest, Laurie contacts to the maverick Father Malachi Briar, hoping a priest might get Rick to calm down and receive appropriate medical treatment. Aghast at the shivering, possibly dangerous wreck her brother has become, Laurie quickly grows uncomfortable with Briar's instant assessment of demonic possession. However, as Rick's tragic fate plays out, Laurie ever so slightly begins to concede that there may be more to this earth than she previously gave credit for - and she's willing to partner up with Briar as the scientific rock of reason to his stalwart belief in God and the Devil."

Colm Meaney (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) as Alister McSweeney: "54. A wry-humored, compassionate priest, Alister stops Laurie after she's just unsuccessfully sought an exorcist from a group of Catholic diocese priests, and tells her he knows the man for her job. Alister introduces Laurie to the unlikely priest Father Malachi Briar, his good friend whom he's stood by even through a murder charge in the aftermath of an exorcism gone bad. Like Briar, Alister believes in the on-going fight between God and the Devil, and he clearly believes in Malachi's talent. He works with him on ravelling the mystery of Rick's possession."

Dondre Whitfield as Jefferson Sims - "30. An African-American serologist (a pathologist who analyzes blood and body fluids), Jefferson is a colleague and friend of Laurie's who works with her at the Mass General Hospital. A good-natured, easy-going person who clearly cares about Laurie (but not in a romantic way), Jefferson analyzes the blood found at her brother Rick's house, the first sample of which is bovine. However, as Rick's condition deteriorates, Jefferson's analyses become unnerving and ultimately frightening."

Graham Beckel as Captain Marco Settembrini: "50. All beer belly and bluster, Marco's a Boston police captain who's wrapped around Laurie's finger since she saved his life with quadruple bypass surgery. A blue collar guy, Marco's happy to help Laurie find her missing brother and doesn't seem to mind when she orders him to detain, not arrest, Rick. Marco's not always thrilled to hear from Laurie, particularly when she calls him at home in the middle of the night, but he helps her however he can."

Angel Desai as Saralee Ting: "28, Asian American. Saralee is a neurological radiologist and a good friend of Laurie's. Trying to help Laurie with her concern about her brother Rick, Saralee takes another look at Rick's MRI from the accident two years ago which took the lives of his wife and baby. As pragmatic as Laurie, but also compassionate, Saralee recommends getting Rick "back in the tube" so they can see if the encephalomalacia trauma has spread." (Last Updated: 07/20/05)

The Butterfly Effect (Scifi Channel)

According to the Slice of SciFi web site, Ashton Kutcher's film The Butterfly Effect is being considered by the SciFi Channel to be turned into either a weekly series or a miniseries. If given the green light, the series will premiere next year. The series would continue where the first film left off and would continue to center on Evan.

VP Mark Stern said that the Butterfly Effect "really fits [the] bill" for a "smart but accessible time travel series." (Last Updated: 01/18/06)

Chameleon (UPN)

Production Status: Dead

Based on the three movies about a government agent called “Chameleon,” she is an IMI corporate assassin that is 75% human and 25% animal.

Danger Girl (UPN)

Production Status: Nothing new since 01/31/03.

This series is an adaptation of the comic book, “Danger Girl”. UPN was seeking actress Jessica Biel (7th Heaven) for the lead role.

Dark Shadows (WB)

Production Status: A pilot was made, but Dark Shadows was not picked up for the WB fall line-up. There are rumors that it is being shopped to other networks. WB officially announced that they have abandoned development of this series.

Producer John Wells (The West Wing, ER) was developing a new version of the 1960s vampire soap opera Dark Shadows.

According to BarnabusUndead, many of the roles from the new Dark Shadows have been cast, including Alec Newman (Dune) as Barnabas Collins, Kelly Hu (X2: X-Men United) as Dr. Julia Hoffman, Jessica Chastain as Carolyn Stoddard, Martin Donovan (The Opposite of Sex) as Roger Collins, Marley Shelton (Valentine) as Victoria Winters, Alexander Gould (Finding Nemo) as David Collins, Bosnia-born actress Ivana Milicevic (Love Actually, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as Angelique, and Matt Czuchry (Jake 2.0) as Willie Loomis.

The WB has announced that they have abandoned the development of this series. According to Garth Ancier, chairman of the frog network. "[It was] wonderfully produced by John Wells, very well-written," Ancier said during the WB's fall press preview in Los Angeles. "[It] just didn't quite gel the way we hoped it would gel, and we didn't go forward, and we're not going forward."

Ancier also said that the network was unhappy with the direction the show had taken after a change in directors. "There was a director assigned to it [Rob Goldman], who was a terrific director," Ancier said. "He pulled out to do a feature film. We had a new director come in who was accomplished in movies, but frankly didn't do a particularly good job, and the rest is history." (Last Updated: 7/16/04)

Darkside (FOX)

Production Status: Fox has given a script commitment.

According to Variety, Fox is developing this SF series, called a Lost-like thriller, from helmer Michael Dinner (North Shore). The series will follow a group of astronauts that discover a mysterious compound on the dark side of the moon. The series will also track an Earth-bound storyline about a government conspiracy to cover up what happened to the crew.

Roundtable Entertainment's Gina Matthews and Grant Scharbo are executive producing with Dinner. The pilot is being written by Brandon Beckner and Scott Sampila. (Last Updated: 02/14/05)

Dead Lawyers (SciFi)

Production Status: Production began December 3rd, 2003.

A Sony Television produced one-hour series, about defense attorney Jimmy Quinn, who is run over by a bus and finds himself in a law firm composed of unscrupulous lawyers who must return from the dead to redeem themselves by defending everyone they screwed when they were alive. Story by Christopher Murphey and Andy Lieberman, with a script by Murphey. Signed to star is Sean Patrick Flanery, Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham, and Sandra Prosper.

Destroy All Humans! (FOX)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Fox Broadcasting Co. has acquired the rights to develop THQ's SF video game Destroy All Humans! into a half-hour computer-animated comedy by Jim Dauterive (King of the Hill). Never before has a video game been used as the basis for a prime-time network television program.

The video game is set in the 1950s and takes a comic approach while spoofing '50s Hollywood B-movies. In it you play Crypto 137, an alien who has landed on Earth and is intent on destroying it.

The Devil's Advocate (SciFi)

A new one-hour conspiracy thriller, from executive producer Mark Burnett (Survivor) and executive producer/writer Jonas McCord (Earth: Final Conflict), “about a theology professor who finds himself in the world of secret societies, religious espionage and genetic research. He is hired by a corporation to form a team of ‘devil's advocates’ to explore bizarre cases.” (Last Updated: 7/27/06)

The Divide (SciFi)

A mystery series that centers on a bogus radio psychic who discovers that his psychic abilities are real when he is visited by the ghost of his twin sister. He teams-up with a coroner to solve crimes. The series is being produced by Lions Gate and executive produced by Stan Brooks, from a script by Frank Military and Dean White.

Dresden Files (SciFi Channel)

Production Status: The two-hour back-door pilot is scheduled to air summer 2006 on SCI FI Channel. Production begins in late November 2005.

"Based on the best-selling 'Dresden Files' novels by Jim Butcher, this 2-hour backdoor pilot film will be executive produced by Academy Award(R) winner Nicolas Cage and Norm Golightly of Saturn Films. Erik Dresden is a detective with extraordinary powers, the kind that could belong only to the descendant of a long line of wizards. Where others see the typical crimes of assault, kidnapping and serial killings, Erik sees otherworldly forces at work -- which only he knows how to combat. Whether consulting for the police on inexplicable crimes or following his own cases, Erik has a unique outlook on the world, and wields a wry sense of humor as one of his most potent weapons. The project is produced by Lions Gate Television and Cage's Saturn Films (The Life of David Gale, Shadow of the Vampire), with Morgan Gendel (Law & Order, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Next Generation) writing; Gendel and Anthony Peckham (Don't Say a Word, 5 Days to Midnight) are executive producers." (The description given by the SciFi Channel.)

(12/16/05) - Author Jim Butcher recently spoke to SCI FI Wire about the upcoming TV movie/pilot adaptation of his novel series.

"I saw the clips [of the movie] and thought my jaw was going to fall off my skull," Butcher said. "I'm very pleased with how well [screenwriters] Robert [Hewitt Wolfe] and Hans [Beimler] get the whole wizard detective concept, and I liked the movie script very much."

Butcher added, "I am in regular contact with Robert Wolfe, the show's producer, who has been great about letting me suggest things here and there and about asking for my thoughts on things."

(12/12/05) - According to the Hollywood Reporter, Valerie Cruz (Nip/Tuck) has been cast opposite Paul Blackthorne in The Dresden Files. "Cruz will play a hard-nosed Chicago police detective who handles violent crimes and works side by side with Dresden."

(11/10/05) - Paul Blackthorne (24) has been cast as Harry Dresden. David Carson (Star Trek: Generations) will direct the two-hour backdoor pilot. Blackthorne played the villainous Stephen Saunders on Fox's 24. The pilot is being written by Hans Beimler (Profiler) and Robert Wolfe (The 4400, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine).

Clive Barker's The Evil One (SciFi Channel)

Production Status: So far, looks likely to make it.

From Clive Barker (Hellraiser) comes this new thriller series, told from the perspective of an evil demon, in which the forces of good and evil do battle each week. Bing produced by Seraphim, Inc. Barker is to be executive producer. USACE is the distributor.

Heroes Anonymous (SCIFI Channel)

"A live-action series based the comic book created by Scott Gimpel and Bill Morrison which follows a group of 20-something aspiring superheroes who form a support group to help them discover their own identity while carving out their secret identity. The series will be executive-produced by Lawrence Bender (Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction), Kevin Brown (Legend of Earthsea, Roswell) and Karl Schaefer (The Dead Zone). Gimpel and Morrison will write the pilot." (The description given by the SCIFI Channel) (Last Updated: 04/14/05)

Ice Planet (Space)

According to The Hollywood North Report, the Space cable channel has greenlit season one of Ice Planet for fall 2006. The new SF series will star Michael Ironside (Starship Troopers, seaQuest DSV, Young Blades) as the Captain of a marooned interplanetary crew. The series is being produced by Daniel D'Or (Starhunter) and Phil Jackson (Starhunter). They are projecting a 5 season storyline. Filming begins in Toronto and the UK this summer, with a budget of $32.5 million, in a deal between Toronto-based SpaceWorks Entertainment and London's Highgate Films. (Last Updated: 05/18/05)

Fearless (WB)

Production Status: Dead, unaired pilot

An action-adventure series based on the Francie Pascal's series of young-adult novels. The series is about a young woman who is born without the gene of fear and is recruited by the FBI.

Firebrand (Lifetime)

In an unsuspected announcement, Lifetime cable network announced: "Following her father's death in the line of duty, a young forensics investigator experiments with raising one's body temperature and accidentally triggers her own heat sensitive super powers becoming Firebrand. A secret crime fighter by night, she must also juggle her sexually charged run-ins with the precinct's by-the-book captain. Executive Producers: Stan Lee (Marvel Comics), Tony Blake & Paul Jackson (She Spies)."

Flash (WB)

Production Status: Pilot ordered by WB. As of 01/30/04, the project is rumored to be dead. Perhaps they decided to salvage some of the ideas...because the Flash is expected to make an apperance on Smallville in 2004.

This new proposed Flash series is about an ordinary young Gothamite guy fresh out of college who discovers that he has superhuman speed. He adopts a new mantra, "Live fast so others don't die young." Following in the tradition of Smallville, this series will be another "no tights, no flights" superheroes-in-the-real-world series. Not only can this new Flash move at super speed, but he can also use his powers to travel back and forth in time. Carolyn Bernstein, WB EVP of Drama Development, described the show to Variety as "a big fun adventure series. There's also a mentor character who'll train him, and there's a legacy of Flashes before him." If the series is picked up, it should be on the WB for the 2004 Fall season. (Last Updated: 10/07/04)

Fly Girls (UPN)

A series in development from Lion's Gate and Mandalay Television. Pretty Woman scribe J.F. Lawton will write and executive producer of the series along with Peter Gruber and Elizabeth Stephen. The series focuses on the star of a sci-fi series who somehow becomes endowed with real super powers.

Found (ABC)

Found is described as a reincarnation drama and is from The 4400’s creator, Scott Peters.

Frankenstein (USA)

Production Status: USA has ordered a two-hour pilot and four scripts. Production begins in May in Toronto. The two-hour pilot will air on USA at 9 p.m. ET/PT on October 10th. The pilot received bad reviews, so it appears unlikely that a series will happen.

From Martin Scorsese and author Dean Koontz. The series takes place in present-day Seattle, where Dr. Victor Frankenstein (played by Thomas Kretschmann) and his creature reside, having survived the past two centuries through genetic tinkering. Through a seemingly standard homicide investigation, a female cop (played by Parker Posey) and her partner (played by Adam Goldberg), discover Dr. Frankenstein and his monster. Later in the pilot, Frankenstein's monster helps the cops battle Dr. Fankenstein and his other creations.

Parker Posey recently spoke to Scifi Wire about the upcoming series. Director Marcus Nispel recently spoke with Scifi Wire about this upcoming series.

The offical website can be found at USA Network. (Last Updated: 10/07/04)

The Gift (WB)

Hypnotic is developing this supernatural drama, from writers Oliver Butcher and Stephen Cornwell, for The WB. The series centers on a college freshman who discovers she has special powers. (Last Updated: 01/06/06)

Global Frequency (WB)

Production Status: As of October 5th, the pilot episode has been completed. As of November 5th, the WB has passed on the show, but is letting it be shipped around to other networks. (Last Updated: 12/20/04)

The WB has officially announced their plans to air this series. The live-action series is based on the WildStorm comic book created by Warren Ellis. John Rogers (The Core) is writing, and executive producing with Mark Burnett. According to KryptonSite, current cast members are Michelle Forbes ("Homicide: Life on the Street," "24") as Miranda Zero and Aimee Garcia ("Greetings From Tuscon," "All About the Andersons") as Aleph. Also, Josh Hopkins, who recently finished a story arc on FOX's North Shore, has been cast as the quick thinking ex-cop Sean Ronin. Jenni Baird, a veteran of three short-lived Australian series, will play Katrina Finch.

"Based on the suspenseful and action-packed graphic novel franchise, Global Frequency marks the dramatic television debut of successful producer Mark Burnett. The Global Frequency is an independent, illegal, covert intelligence agency determined to prevent international politics from undermining the security of the global community. Led by the former NSA agent Miranda Zero, GF is everywhere and nowhere -- and it's mankind's best defense against everything that occurs outside our peripheral vision. This marvel of brains and machinery is hacked into every satellite, mainframe, cell phone and database across the globe. With the help of her central command dispatcher, the feisty but brilliant Aleph, Zero is just a phone call away from tapping anyone anywhere to volunteer their skills to help save the world. GF's newest 'recruit,' suspended cop Sean Ronin, is paired with introverted Kate Finch, a mastermind of the scientific inner workings of the covert network. The most original conspiracy saga since The X-Files, Global Frequency shows us that one person can make a difference in the battle against the dangers of the modern world. From Warner Bros. Television Production Inc. and Cloudbreak Entertainment with writer/executive producer John Rogers (upcoming film Catwoman, The Core) and director Nelson McCormick (Alias, Third Watch)." (Description given by the WB)

(7/16/04) - Spoilers for the pilot episode of this upcoming series can be found at Krypton Site.

(7/22/04) - Dark Horizons reported a rumor that:

"The producer/showrunner of the upcoming comic based TV series Global Frequency has apparently been battling with WB Network executives for weeks in an attempt to get Amber Benson cast as Katrina Finch, a new role he created for the series. He has lost the battle, as of today. The WB allegedly refuses to allow him to cast Benson in the role. Why? Apparently it's because Amber played a lesbian on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. If so, that's not just wrong but confusing (after all she played the character for two seasons with them before)".

Executive producer/show developer John Rogers had this to say about the rumor: "So, I believe there's a misunderstanding, but no rash decisions based on previous roles. I still love Amber; I'm the one who approached her, I'm the one who brought her in, I think she's a helluva an actress, and will always drop her into the top of the casting list for any appropriate part. Until we finalize casting on the part in GF -- and please note the process is STILL ONGOING -- it's inappropriate for me to comment further. It's the pilot process: it's horrendously complicated and unpleasant for all concerned. So far we've gotten insanely lucky on our casting, and I can only pray our luck continues.

"I just want the fans to know I respect their concerns, respect their affection for a fine actress, and I'm trying to make a show that speaks to them, which is why Amber would be the type of actress considered in the first place."

(8/12/04) - The WB never did allow Amber Benson to test for the role of Katrina Finch. It has been announced that Jenni Baird has been given the role. Also, it has been announced that Ben Edlund ("Tick," "Angel") has joined "Global Frequency" as a writer-producer and will be writing the third episode. Other writers that are now on board are: David Slack ("Jackie Chan Adventures," "Max Steel," "Teen Titans") and Diego Gutierrez ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Dawson’s Creek," "The Shield," and "Kingpin").

(11/05/04) - According to The Continuum, The WB has passed on the show.

"However, they've also been real gentlemen and released it back to the studio to be taken elsewhere," John Rogers said.

"On a personal note, everyone -- my fellow producer Mark Burnett, the director Nelson McCormick, the actors, the DP and his cameramen, the production design down to the ridiculously hyper-efficient PAs -- worked their asses off and BELIEVED in the project. As executive producer I owe -- no, I have a deep responsibility to those people, to Warren's talent, and to the book's enormous fanbase to run this bastard out down every road I can, to get this show on the air.

"And, frankly, it would be selfish of me to keep to myself the little chill I get when I hear Michelle (Forbes) say the line 'My name is Miranda Zero ... and you are on the Global Frequency.'

"Fortunately for us the television landscape has changed," Rogers said. "Midseason and summer launches, 13-episode runs, genre shows are now no longer longshots but viable strategies. DC Comics stands enthusiastically behind both the comic and the show, especially now that they've seen the pilot."

(12/20/04) - Amazing Stories #607 has a four-page feature about the Global Frequency TV project, before it was announced that the WB passed on the pilot. Also, J. Michael Straczynski, creator of Babylon 5, posted on the rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated newsgroup this:

"Since it's no longer an issue, because the show was not picked up, the series I'd mentioned that had come to me to talk about coming aboard as an EP was Warren Ellis' Global Frequency. I'd met with the people involved, been approved by the network, went by to meet Warren during filming in Vancouver, who seemed like a very nice sort, and was waiting for the next round of serious conversations...but the show has not been picked up by WB. I know they're shopping it elsewhere, so we'll see, but for now, at least, that's that. (I have to say, by the way, that the pilot script is probably the smartest script I've ever read. It could really be one hell of a series.)"

The Haskett Chronicles (NBC)

NBC has ordered this supernatural pilot from Conan O'Brien's production company Conaco. This as-yet-untitled hourlong drama, formerly titled The Haskett Chronicles, is from writer Willie Reale (Keen Eddie). Reale will executive-produce with O'Brien, Jeff Ross, A.J. Morewitz and David Kissinger.

The series would center on a politician who is murdered but is given a chance to come back to the living world in order to save his soul. But, this time he is at a much lower stage in life. (Last Updated: 02/01/06)

Hellraiser

Production Status: On 12/16/04, Variety reported that a show runner will be named shortly to script a pilot episode.

From Clive Barker's Hellraiser film series comes this new thriller series. Panacea Entertainment, Park Avenue Entertainment and Blueprint Entertainment are behind the project; Larry Kuppin, whose New World Entertainment hatched the first two Hellraiser films, will executive produce with Eric Gardner.

According to Variety, "a tabloid journalist stumbles onto a plot between the ghoulish Pinhead and a software magnate that would have dire consequences for mankind."

Originally the series was going to be a type of anthology series, that didn't overall focus on the Cenobites. It was originally rumored that some episodes would fill in the gaps between Hellraiser 1, 2 and 3. (Last Updated: 12/16/04)

Jekyll (BBC America)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, BBC America is developing a new series based on Robert Louis Stevenson's classic SF story Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The series will consist of six 90-minute episodes and updates the classic tale to the modern day. James Nesbitt stars as Dr. Jekyll. The series will premiere in the second quarter of next year. (Last Updated: 04/05/06)

Kamelot (UPN)

Production Status: Pilot Ordered.

From Horror master Wes Craven, King Arthur is resurrected as a revolutionary who reigns supreme in a Camelot-like future society. From Miramax TV and Abandon Entertainment. The pilot is written by Ron Milbauer and Terri Hughes.

Kill Switch (ABC)

Mark Cherry, creator of Desperate Housewives, and Don Mancini, creator of the horror franchise Child's Play, are working on a new SF pilot for ABC according to The Hollywood Reporter. Cherry describes the one-hour SF drama as Touched by an Angel meets Quantum Leap.

The series centers on a woman who is executed for killing her daughter's murderer and then enters a type of purgatory. Every episode she finds herself in the body of someone about to be killed. She must figure out who the murderer will be and prevent it from happening. "Instead of a whodunit, it's a who-will-do-it," Cherry said.

The series has a tone similar to Desperate Housewives. "The tone isn't exactly like Desperate Housewives" he said. "But it has humor and wit in it. [It] seemed like something in his wheelhouse." (Last Updated: 9/30/05)

Kyra (SciFi Channel)

The Sci Fi Channel is apparently close to a deal for a television spin-off of the upcoming The Chronicles of Riddick movie. The spin-off would focus on Alexa Davalos' character as she joins a group of mercenaries in a search for her mentor. Writer & director David Twohy is apparently set to executive produce this TV series if it goes forward. The series is supposed to fill in the five year gap between the end of “Pitch Black” and the beginning of “The Chronicles of Riddick”.

Davalos won't be involved with the TV series as the role will likely be recast with someone younger in mind. Twohy told Sci Fi Wire, "because, A, she wants to pursue a film career, not a cable career, and, [B], it might deal with a slightly younger version [of Kyra]. Because [Riddick takes place] five years later, she's playing 18, 19, 20. I think this character would be 15, 16, 17." (Last Updated: 6/7/04)

Left Behind (PAX)

Production Status: On Hiatus - production is rumored to start this year.

This drama has been announced as one of the new series being launched for the 2004-2005 season. The series is based on the best selling novels with over 60 million copies sold, writting by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins. In one cataclysmic moment, millions around the world disappear. The mass disappearances leave the world in chaos as the remaining people search for their loved ones and wonder why they are still here. Executive producers are Joe Goodman and Bobby Neutz. (Last Updated: 4/19/05)

Lord of Illusions (SHOWTIME)

Production Status: Pilot script turned in for consideration.

This series, based on the movie, is being developed by Clive Barker and his Seraphim Film for Showtime & MGM.

The Lost Room (was called Motel Man) (SciFi)

Production Status: The Scifi Channel will air this eight-hour limited series in December 2006. The SCIFI Channel is leaving open the possibility for it to become a regular series.

This limited series (a cross between The Fugitive and The Twilight Zone) follows Joe Miller, a police detective who discovers a collection of seemingly everyday objects that have strange powers. These items include a comb that can stop time, a pencil that creates 1961 pennies from thin air when tapped, and a bus ticket that can transport people to Ft. Wayne, Indiana. The most powerful object is a motel room key that grants access to the very room where the objects originated (alternate worlds). Joe is targeted by secret organizations that have been collecting the items for various agendas. Joe is also being sought by the police for the disappearance of his wife and child, who entered the motel room and never re-emerged. Chris Leone, Laura Harkcom and Paul Workman wrote and will co-executive-produce Motel Man, from Lionsgate Television. Production is set to begin this summer. (Last Updated: 04/28/06)

Masters of Science Fiction (ABC)

According to Variety, ABC has given a green light to this SF anthology TV series. Masters of Science Fiction will have episodes based on well-known authors such as Ray Bradbury and Isaac Asimov. IDT Entertainment and Industry Entertainment, which also produced Masters of Horror for Showtime, are developing this science fiction version. ABC has currently ordered four episodes, but at least six episodes and as many as 13 will be produced.

Writer Michael Tolkin (The Rapture) will adapt and direct an episode. The producers are currently in talks to produce Harlan Ellison's "The Discarded," Asimov's "The Last Question," and Bradbury'a "Dark They Were, and Golden-Eyed." Production should start in Vancouver this May. A summer launch is a possibility, but Fall 2006 is more likely. (Last Updated: 03/24/06)

Meet the Haunteds (NBC)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, NBC Universal Television Studio has optioned rights to the graphic novel Meet the Haunteds from Platinum Studios. NBC hopes to develop it into a half-hour scripted comedy. Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, chairman of Platinum Studios, described the project as a "supernatural culture clash."

The single-camera sitcom will center on an upper-middle-class white family who moves into a restored house in a neighborhood that's haunted by a black family from the early 1970s, the trade paper reported.

Mermaid (WB)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The WB has ordered a one-hour mermaid pilot from Charmed showrunner Brad Kern and producer Aaron Spelling. The series centers on a mermaid, Nikki (Nathalie Kelley), rescued by a young man when she washes ashore. Her savior, Matt Johnson (Geoff Stults), is in utter disbelief of Nikki's true supernatural nature. The mermaids come from a sunken city and have supernatural abilities: superhuman strength and agility, can see in the dark, "read" emotions and have a connection with other sea creatures. But, there is another race of creatures out there and they are hunting for Nikki. Brad Kern, Aaron Spelling, and E. Duke Vincent are executive producing.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Who's Roger Daltrey has joined the cast and will play Eric Luger. Also, newcomer Natalie Kelley has been cast as Nikki and Geoff Stults (7th Heaven) has been cast as Matt Johnson.

Executive producer Brad Kern told SCI FI Wire, "The mermaid is being played by a fresh new face that we've plucked out of Sydney, Australia," Kern said. "We were casting literally around the world looking for our mermaid. We looked in London and New York and New Zealand, Hollywood, Florida, Melbourne and Sydney."

"I think we looked at around 300 people, and we finally found this amazing, fresh 20-year-old who is just an ethereal beauty. She's got a very unique look, which is what I was looking for. I wanted somebody to come out of the water who looked unlike anybody we've ever seen before. Her name is Natalie Kelley." (Last Updated: 5/11/05)

Midnighters (WB)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the WB has ordered a script for Midnighters, a proposed one-hour supernatural drama, which revolves around teens who were born at the stroke of midnight who have gained access to a 25th hour of the day. The project is being adapted by Darren Lemke (Boogeyman) from the Alloy book series published by HarperCollins. (Last Updated: 12/16/05)

Night Thrasher (UPN)

Production Status: Premium script commitment by UPN.

This series is adapted from the Marvel Comics character by the same name. The series is about a black superhero named “Night Thrasher”. The series is set in present day, and Night Thrasher, Dwayne Taylor, is a 25 year old millionaire who lends his services to the CIA. It’s rumored that Michael Elliot will be one of the writers and also executive produce with Bill Silverman, Avi Arad, and Rick Unger.

NYPD 2069 (FOX)

A new cop series, created by Steven Bochco, set in 2069. "It's an interesting notion to envision a major urban center like New York 65 years down the road," Bochco said in an interview. "This is not science fiction. This is trying to conceptualize a relatively near-term future that's logically a function of the world we know today. The project, set for fall 2003, revolves around a present-day cop who suddenly fast-forwards to 2069." Bochco said the show won't have a post-apocalyptic feel to it, unlike most features and series set in the future. "I don't want to do a desperately dark world," he said. "I think it's a different world, different in ways I haven't seen dramatized. But it's not as dark as 'Mad Max' or anything akin to 'Dark Angel."

Variety reports that Annie Parisse is joining the cast. Parisse will be a member of a four-person police squad. NYPD detective Alex Franco, reanimated after 66 years of being cryogenically frozen, will also be a member. Josh Hopkins (Roswell) will play the lead.

OZ (WB)

Production Status: ?

A series based on the Land of Oz from the Wizard of Oz. Likely to be to expensive to produce. No recent news on its status.

Painkiller Jane (SciFi Channel)

Production Status: The two-hour movie/pilot , based on the Event Comics series, will premiere Dec. 10 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on the Scifi Channel. On November 30th the Sci Fi Channel launched the official website.

(07/25/06 Update) - The Sci Fi Channel recently announced that Painkiller Jane has been given the green light for 22 hour-long episodes. Production should begin in Vancouver next month and will premiere on the Sci Fi Channel this January, with syndication for fall 2007.

The cast has not been finalized yet, but hopefully they can get Vaugier back. It is also unclear whether this will continue the story from the movie or the series will start over ‘fresh.’ The description makes it sound like the latter:

“Painkiller Jane is the story of Jane Vasko, a young researcher trying to make a difference as the world faces its greatest drug addiction epidemic. When Jane catches wind of a budding conspiracy, and a secret research program within her corporation, she turns DEA informant. Thus threatening to expose corruption within one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, Jane becomes a target. However, she is accidentally exposed to an experimental 'cure' that renders her impervious to sickness and injury but not pain. Unfortunately for Jane, these powers come at a price: she has less than a month left to live before the cure's unstable nature overtakes her. Jane continues to develop new abilities. After each injury, she heals stronger than she had been. But the pain remains and intensifies as she races to turn the tables on her pursuers, and save her own life.”

(01/26/06 Update) - A review has been posted on Jim's Writings. Also, the movie had a 1.9 household rating with 1.25 million persons 25-54 and 2.3 million overall viewers. SciFi Channel has been pretty quiet about the movie after it aired, so it is doubtful a series will be made.

Painkiller Jane is based on Joe Quesada and Jim Palmiotti's Event superhero comic series. NBC Universal TV Studios will produce in association with MGM TV. Written by and executive produced by John Harrison (Frank Herbert's Dune), Don Opper and Greg Gold. Jason Netter (From Dusk Till Dawn 2 and 3) and Ken Levin will co-executive produce. Production began the week of January 17, 2005.

"Based on the Event Comics series, Painkiller Jane tells the story of Jane Browning (Vaugier), who acquires self-healing powers and extraordinary physical and mental abilities after exposure to a biochemical weapon that alters her genes. On the run from a sinister organization determined to replicate her powers—or destroy her—Jane joins forces with unlikely allies to become an ultra-covert crime-fighting agent." (The description given by the SciFi Channel.)

Actress Emmanuelle Vaugier (Dr. Helen Bryce in Smallville) has been cast to play Jane in the upcoming two hour pilot. Tate Donovan (The OC) plays Graham Knight, a professor who tries to help Jane figure out her new abilities. Richard Roundtree (Shaft) plays Col. Watts, her commanding officer and mentor. Eric Dane plays a street-smart thief who befriends Jane. Walker Howard has also been cast.

While in New York promoting Saw II, Vaugier spoke to Superhero Hype about her character. "She's kind of like an Alias meets G.I. Jane with a little bit of superpowers infused into her life," she said. "She was an ordinary girl in the military who was in the top of her game, and she was exposed to biochemical weaponry that changed her genetic make-up, so she has the ability to heal herself. Through the course of the pilot, she's trying to figure out who's done this to her and how it's affecting her body. At the same time, there's obviously the bad guys trying to find her and duplicate what they've done because it's never worked before. She was kind of a scientific experiment that was surprisingly successful."

Will she be wrapped-up in bandages like the comic book version of the character? "They didn't have me in bandages. I sort of have a signature jacket that I wear once I transform into Painkiller Jane, and the signature red spikey hair. It was kind of fun, but the network had a problem with me wearing eye protection during my opening sequence with machine guns and bullets flying everywhere. They're like 'We wanna see her face!' and I'm like 'But you want me not blind. See not blind is the key here, because then you can have a series.' We won that battle."

Emmanuelle Vaugier, spoke to SCI FI Wire about how her character, Jane Browning, and her alter ego, Painkiller Jane, are variations on the same character. "They're slightly different, yet the same," Vaugier (Smallville) said in an interview. "Jane doesn't become a different person, necessarily, but things happen in her life that change her perspective on life in general, on who she is, and she starts to question a lot of things. So in her transformation into Painkiller Jane, she becomes a little more hardened and a little more skeptical of the world around her. I didn't treat them as two entirely different characters, but there definitely is a shift that happens."

Vaugier hopes that Painkiller Jane will become a weekly series on SCI FI. "The possibilities are really never-ending," she said. "I think it'd be something fun to do as a series. It would be physically challenging and, I hope, challenging as an actress as well, depending on what they have me do and where the storyline goes. But it's definitely something I'd love to see, and I'd love to see where the arc of the character would lead us."

Co-creator Jimmy Palmiotti recently spoke to Comics Continuum about the adaptation. "The set-up is different but the main idea is still there," Palmiotti said. "The weaknesses will, for me, always be in the writing and changing the character to come off as more modern a story. I don't agree where they took the character, but understand it. The Painkiller Jane we created is a little wilder then her screen counterpart. I wish it was more violent and had taken the character in a darker direction. Hey, I co-created it, so I will always find something until I write and direct it. It's a natural thing. The good thing is that if it goes to series ... well, that's a positive thing for fine-tuning a character like this." (Last Updated: 1/25/06)

Pen and the Sword (NBC)

Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica) is developing this fantasy series for NBC. Pen and the Sword is about a young man working in a building that is a portal to a medieval alternate universe. (Last Updated: 12/20/05)

Persons Unknown (SCIFI Channel)

This series is executive produced by Heather McQuarrie (The Usual Suspects). It..."is a surreal mind game of a series centering on a group of strangers who awaken in a deserted town with no memory of how they arrived, only to realize that there is no escape." This series is from Fox Television Studios. (Last Updated: 04/28/06)

Pretty Little Liars (WB)

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the WB has ordered a script for Pretty Little Liars, a proposed one-hour supernatural drama, which revolves around four 16-year-old girls whose fifth best friend went missing two years ago. The girls then become haunted by messages that start appearing from her. The series comes from Warner Brothers Television, Alloy Entertainment, and the Tannenbaum Co. Pretty Little Liars is being adapted by Lizzy Weiss (Blue Crush) from the Alloy book series published by HarperCollins. (Last Updated: 12/16/05)

Polaris (SciFi)

In development by J. Michael Stracynski (Babylon 5 & Jeremiah). The plot is top secret, but JMS has turned in at least two scripts including one for a two-hour pilot. Polaris was one of three final candidates to be picked up by the Sci-Fi Channel. Unfortunately, JMS announced in January 2003 that Polaris was turned down for being "too science fictiony". After the turnaround period has expired, JMS plans to take the project elsewhere. On April 1st 2003, Straczynski said that another studio might be showing strong interest in Polaris.

Practical Magic (CBS)

(02/01/06) - This proposed series is based on Sandra Bullock's 1998 fantasy movie Practical Magic. According to Variety, CBS and Warner Brothers TV are still developing this proposed series. In the proposed series two sisters struggle with the blessing and curse of magical abilities.

(10/04/04) - According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jeri Ryan (Star Trek: Voyager) is in final negotiations to join Kim Delaney in a CBS pilot entitled “Sudbury” (now being called Practical Magic and previously known as Colderon). Ryan and Delaney would play sisters (Antonia & Kylie), both witches, in the series. In the pilot the sisters learn that they and their entire family are witches, including mother Sally, Aunt Jet, and Aunt Frances. The pilot is executive produced by Becky Hartman-Edwards, Denise DiNovi, and Sandra Bullock. (Last Updated: 10/04/04)

The Prisoner (Sky One)

According to the BBC News, The United Kingdom's Sky One is planning a new six-part series inspired by the 1960s series The Prisoner. The cult series starred Patrick McGoohan as a former secret agent trapped in an isolated town called the "Village." This upcoming series will not take place in the "Village." But will still involve the themes of paranoia, conspiracy, and identity crisis.

Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who) will play the title role originally played by Patrick McGoohan. Sky One director of programs Richard Woolfe told BBC News that it will be a "thrilling reinvention" of the drama. Damien Timmer will executive produce the show. He said that the new series will take "liberties with the original." Bill Gallagher (Conviction, Clocking Off) is writing the pilot. (Last updated on: 05/05/06)

The Robinsons: Lost in Space (WB)

Darkhorizons reports that the WB’s remake of the Irwin Allen fantasy-adventure drama is set to start filming March 2nd thru March 17th at Vancouver Film Studios. The pilot is being directed and produced by John Woo (Paycheck, Mission Impossible II), also producing is Kevin Burns, Jon Jashni (King Conan: Crown of Iron), Terrence Chang (Mission: Impossible II, Face/Off), Suzanne Zizzi, John P. Kousakis and Douglas Petrie (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) who also wrote the script. (Note:) Douglas Petrie (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) reportedly left the show due to creative differences.

So far, the following actors have been casted: Brad Johnson (Left Behind: The Movie) as John Robinson, Ryan Malgarini (Freaky Friday) as Will Robinson, Mike Erwin (Everwood) as Don West, Adrianne Palicki as Judy Robinson, and Jayne Brook (John Doe). The series remake takes place in 2097 and doesn't feature Dr. Smith, but does include a robot.

This remake series hasn't been slated for this Fall by The WB network. Here is the explanation given by the producers and Jup2.Com:

"'The Robinsons: Lost in Space' will not be seen on the WB this fall. The inability to sign a top-flight show runner before the "up-fronts" in NYC next week will keep the show on the shelf, at least for the present. The WB is still very keen on the series and will work with Fox and Synthesis to find and hire a qualified writer/producer in time for mid-season. As far as Jon and I are concerned, we'd rather do the show right -- or not at all. The WB's decision to wait until we find the right creative partner is a smart one" (Last updated on: 5/18/04)

Scarlett (Lifetime)

Production Status: Lifetime Television has ordered a pilot.

According to Trek Today, this new series is being developed by writers Robert Hewitt Wolfe (Star Trek: The Next Generation) and Hans Beimler (Star Trek: The Next Generation), about an Anne Rice-like gothic horror writer who moves into an old mansion in New Orleans and finds her fictional characters coming to life, or so she thinks. (Last Updated: 5/16/05)

Raines (formerly Seeing Red) (NBC)

Production Status: NBC has given the green light for this supernatural cop drama pilot about a brilliant and eccentric cop who talks to dead victims that help him solve his cases. The Seeing Red (now called Raines) pilot was directed by Oscar-nominated Frank Darabont (The Green Mile, The Shawshank Redemption), from a script by writer-producer Graham Yost (Boomtown, Band of Brothers). The series will have a January midseason start, when it will air Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

(05/12/06) - NBC gave this series (and Heroes) a green light for the 2006-2007 season.

(02/28/06) - According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park) is in final negotiations to star in the pilot as an brilliant and eccentric cop with the ability to talk to dead victims. Also, Luis Guzman and Nicole Sullivan (MADtv, Hot Properties) have joined the cast of the pilot Raines (formerly Seeing Red).

Silver Lake (UPN)

Production Status: UPN has ordered the pilot.

A supernatural drama series from producer Aaron Spelling (Beverly Hills 90210). Variety reports that Justin Tanner (Gilmore Girls) will write and executive produce the pilot with Spelling and E. Duke Vincent. The series is about "a record-store owner who uses his psychic abilities to communicate with the dead and help them resolve issues they left behind."

Kerr Smith (Dawson's Creek) leads the cast with Gariyaki Mutambirwa, Nadege August, Hedy Burress, Sandra Bernhard, Stephanie Faracy and William Russ also cast in the project. (Last Updated: 4/20/04)

Sin City (?)

According to Variety, the Weinstein Co. is in final talks with Barbara Schneeweiss to develop a series based on Robert Rodriguez's Sin City movie. The Sin City TV show would follow 2006's Sin City 2. The Sin City films are based on Frank Miller's graphic novel series. Miller also co-directed the movie with Rodriguez. (Last Updated: 10/24/05)

Skrull Kill Krew (?)

There is little detail on this live action TV project at this time. The series or TV movie will be based on the short lived 1996 Marvel comic book series Skrull Kill Krew. The comic book was created by Grant Morrison, Mark Millar, and Steve Yeowall. The comic book focused on a team of humans with the viral affliction Skrullovoria Induced Skrullophobia (SIS). The characters were infected with this virus after eating beef from Skrull alien shape shifters that had been trapped in cow form. Now they have varying degrees of shape shifting powers and can recognize a Skrull no matter what form it takes. Unfortunately the virus also damages their brains causing progressive episodes of neurological disease.

The Skrull Kill Krew travel across America killing any Skrull shapeshifters they find, in an attempt to stop them from taking over the Earth. Members include Ryder (leader of the Krew with the ability to animate his dreadlocks and teleport), Catwalk (Kimberly Dee - a former supermodel model with the power to take the form of a feline-human hybrid), Dice (Rob Fortune - surfer dude from LA with the power to transform his hands into various types of weapons), Moonstomp (a skinhead white supremacist from the UK whose skin is turning black), and Riot (Heidi Sladkin - a punk-rock chick that can turn into a giant insectoid creature). (Last Updated: 11/10/05)

Snap (SCIFI Channel)

This one-hour thriller is being produced by Jesse Alexander (Lost) and is about a federal agent up against a Big Brother-type artificial intelligence. (Last Updated: 04/28/06)

Spellbound (FOX)

A romantic comedy about a male witch (Dave Annable) that falls for a mortal (Maggie Lawson). FOX is trying to revive the series after the failed NBC pilot. Christine Baranski (Happy Family) and Barry Bostwick (Spin City) have been cast to play the parents of Annable's character and are also witches. "Frazier" producers, Rob Greenberg and Suzanne Martin created the series. FOX has pushed the pilot back to midseason 2005 series consideration. (Last Updated: 10/07/04)

Still Life (FOX)

Production Status: According to Zap2it.com, Fox will likely cancel the series and not air the show at all, even though seven episodes have already been shot and completed.

A possible midseason replacement, this series follows the lives of a family, the Morgans, through the narration of the deceased Jake Morgan. Jake was the golden child of the four children in the family. Jake was murdered on the first day of being a cop. A year later, he now watches his family from beyond. Marti Noxon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) is one of the executive producers for the series.

Gail Berman, president of entertainment for the Fox network, told SCI FI Wire that a pilot was produced, but did not make it to the network's schedule. "I don't think we'll put it on the air," Berman told reporters. "I just don't think it's good enough."

"It wasn't terrible at all. I just think in the end it … didn't live up to the concept, initially. I think the concept of the tale of a young man telling the story from the grave is probably a more literary device than it is an actual television device. So if I implied that it was terrible in any way, I certainly didn't mean to. It just wasn't … enough for us." (Last Updated: 7/16/04)

Stoner (Sci Fi Channel)

A new series, from Jeff Kline (Jackie Chan Adventures), set in “in an alternate-reality Los Angeles where superheroes actually exist. It centers on a slacker who is mistakenly thrust into the limelight as a superhero.” (Last Updated: 7/27/06)

Suture Girl (SciFi)

An adaptation of the Gretchen Culver character from the Spawn comic-book series. The series centers on a former advertising executive who was murdered by a serial killer and finds herself stitched back to life and imbued with special powers by a mysterious gypsy woman. She fights evil with the help of a handsome crusading lawyer. Alan McElroy (Spawn) wrote the backdoor pilot, which will be executive produced by Fireworks Entertainment and Edmonds Entertainment's Tracey E. Edmonds, Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and Sheila Ducksworth. Spawn creator Todd McFarlane will also be a producer.

Teen Wolf (UPN)

A new tv series adaptation of the 1985 feature film that will transition the franchise from its comedic roots to a more black humor/fantasy-driven series (similiar to the feel of Buffy the Vampire Slayer).

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (FOX)

According to Variety, Fox has committed to a pilot for a Terminator TV series tentatitvely titled The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Andy Vajna and Mario Kassar's C2 Pictures (producers of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines) has made a deal with Warner Brothers Television and writer Josh Friedman (War of the Worlds) for the series. Friedman will write the pilot and serve as executive producer-show runner of the series. Vajna and Kassar will serve as executive producers.

Linda Hamilton, is not expected to reprise her role as Sarah Connor. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is also not expected to be in series. The series will take place in the time frame between the second and third Terminator movies. It will explore the events that happened to Sarah Connor and her son after the end of T2. (Last Updated: 11/10/05)

Those Who Walk in Darkness (SCIFI Channel)

"A drama based on John Ridley's (Three Kings, Third Watch) best-selling novel of the same name about an expert team of S.W.A.T. police whose primary mission is to hunt down and capture people who genetically possess super powers. John Ridley will write and executive-produce in association with NBC Universal Television Studio." (The description given by the SCIFI Channel) (Last Updated: 04/14/05)

Time Machine (WB?)

According to The DreamWorks SKG Fansite, a TV miniseries is in the works based on the Time Machine (2002) movie. Citing anonymous sources, the site reported that Time Machine executive producer Arnold Leibovit is in talks with The David Wolper Organization and Warner Brothers to continue the story as a multipart miniseries and possibly as a television series. (Last Updated: 2/20/04)

Time Tunnel (SCIFI Channel)

"An updated interpretation of the classic 1960s television series created by Irwin Allen. The new series centers on a female scientist and a government agent who find themselves trapped in time when an experimental time travel project is sabotaged. Produced with Fox Television Studios and Kevin Burns and Jon Jashni of Synthesis Entertainment. Allen's wife, Shelia Allen, will produce. Written by John Turman (The Hulk)." (The description given by the SCIFI Channel) (Last Updated: 04/14/05)

Tomorrow's Child (SCIFI Channel)

"A series centered around a young girl who was horribly burned in an accident and saved by a special skin of extraterrestrial origin, which gives her powers beyond human comprehension. She travels the country pursued by the government while looking for the origin of her powers and seeking out others like her. Produced by NBC Universal Television Studio and Gary Foster's Horseshoe Bay Productions (Daredevil, Elektra)." (The description given by the SCIFI Channel) (Last U