B5:LotR & Jeremiah

SFTV's JMS Page

SciFi was handing out this postcard at San Diego ComicCon 2001
promoting Babylon 5: Legend of the Rangers

At The San Diego Comic Con this year, J. Michael Straczynski could not make it due to production being moved up on a a series he was working on that he had not yet been able to make a formal announcement. When this poster was spotted in the MGM booth, I sent a note to the SFTV News Email list, the info was reposted to the moderated Babylon 5 newsgroup and Joe finally had the opportunity to break the silence on Jeremiah!

From J. Michael Straczynski on rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated

Well, the moratorium on information is over now that MGM has announce the info at San Diego Comic Con (which, sadly, I can't attend due to the press of work).

It was previously announced that I was writing the pilot 2-hour opener for a series entitled JEREMIAH. What was not known, though speculated about, was the show going to series. We got the go ahead right around the end of the year, though I've had to be kinda quiet about it until now.

In brief: it's an order for 20 hours (the opening 2 hour movie and 18 hours to follow) for the Showtime Network. We start formal prep next Wednesday, and start shooting September 4th; after finishing the movie we then go right into shooting the series. We've hired all our crew, we're in the very last stages of casting (with several name actors up for various roles), and we're just about ready to rock.

This is going to be a heavily dramatic series, character-oriented, with a measure of action and humor as well. Because this is pay cable, they've taken off the usual broadcast TV handcuffs and told me to take it to the wall creatively, no restrictions, so I plan to do just that.

The series will debut on Showtime in January with a huge PR campaign. I still kinda have to wait for Showtime before I can talk specifics about others involved (writers, directors, cast, and so on). But in my view it's a terrific team, and it's going to be a fun show.

jms

To the various inquiries....

Yes, it will eventually be syndicated, but not for about 2 years.

Joe Dante is not involved due to other commitments, but another well known feature film director is now attached to direct the pilot movie. (Again, I can't give specifics on crew or cast until Showtime comes out with that first...but I can say that there is a rather impressive pedigree of people both in front of and behind the camera).

It will air in prime-time, on the Showtime network, and we have a heck of a lot more money to play with than on B5...it's going to be a huge show.

jms

>Yes, what is it about? Science Fiction? Fantasy? Western? Who or
>what is this Jeremiah?
>

Right around now in our timeline, a virus wipes out everyone on the planet over the age of puberty (figure around 12-13).

It is now about 15 years later. Those who were once children have now grown up and are in their late 20s on down. For 15 years, they have been living on the scraps of the old world; now they must either continue the downward slide, or begin to rebuild the world, taking responsibility for themselves and the world and each other.

It is, oddly enough, a post-apocalyptic series about *beginnings* rather than endings, about hope rather then despair. It is about the new world rising out of the ashes of the old world, what shape that world will take, and who will get to decide that shape.

More than that would be to give too much away.

jms