New Battlestar Galactica Movie

[C.E. Evans]

The concept doesn't really seem to lend itself to a movie, unless, as Guy said, they intend to have sequel after sequel after sequel.

It could probably be done in just three movies.

For the most, Battlestar Galactica is just about a ragtag fleet wandering around space looking for Earth and fighting Cylons along the way. Like Star Trek's basic premise of a starship in space, it's a flexible enough format to be tailored for both movies or TV.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I think a movie, in theory, is fine. But I think the recent TV series will still be too fresh in people's minds. There's no element of nostalgia. It'll just seem like a random name borrowing for their sci-fi movie.

Granted, I think a blockbuster take that finds a happy medium between the two versions would be a great idea at some point (my only problem is I assume they'd want to leave room for a sequel and I can't think of a cohesive ending for the movie that still has room for other movies). I just think it needs more space before it gets made. Although I felt the same way about The Amazing Spiderman and The Incredible Hulk (that being said, there were good studio reasons for both of those reboots - the former to preserve Sony's rights to keep making Spiderman movies, the latter because they wanted to add him to the MCU, which was something I had no concept of at the time).

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I think the premise is nicely suited to a movie, especially a trilogy. Both series got bogged down with having to stretch and explain the Cylon harassment over the long haul. I think BSG has two big moments: the Cylon holocaust and finding Earth. Both can be done memorably in the movie(s) without having to add all the oddball stuff in the middle.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I wonder if this version will actually be in existing nuBSG continuity like the Singer/DeSanto version supposedly was going to be.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I think the premise is nicely suited to a movie, especially a trilogy. Both series got bogged down with having to stretch and explain the Cylon harassment over the long haul. I think BSG has two big moments: the Cylon holocaust and finding Earth. Both can be done memorably in the movie(s) without having to add all the oddball stuff in the middle.

I'm afraid I have to disagree with you there for several reasons.

1. If the only big moments are the holocaust and finding Earth, then that's the ballgame. There's no story to tell after finding Earth that's both worth telling and something we're familiar with. On the other hand, if there's nothing in between the holocaust and Earth, that leaves nothing to tell at all.

2. If you look at the original series, finding Earth isn't even a beat at all. That doesn't happen until the disastrous 1980 show. The takeaway point here is that finding Earth isn't something that would happen until the very very end, certainly not in the first film if there's going to be a sequel, at least assuming either the original or nuBSG is a model.

3. Comparing the original show to nuBSG, there is an important common beat in the middle of the journey: meeting the Pegasus.

 

[DigificWriter]

Hmm. We'll see if this actually comes to fruition and what it brings to the table if it does. Personally, I think the core concepts of BSG are ones that lend themselves to a myriad of different interpretations, although it is admittedly going to take a lot to live up to the existing legacy of the property.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I think the premise is nicely suited to a movie, especially a trilogy. Both series got bogged down with having to stretch and explain the Cylon harassment over the long haul. I think BSG has two big moments: the Cylon holocaust and finding Earth. Both can be done memorably in the movie(s) without having to add all the oddball stuff in the middle.

Although that puts them in a bit of a bind. It works well, provided there's no plans to make a sequel movie. If they want to save something for the sequel, though, things are trickier. I suppose they could take the war to the Cylons and defeat them in the first movie as a way to satisfactorily conclude things without completing the whole story.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

The plot is often least important part of a film (or book), and would be pretty easy to structure to tell the entire story in a couple hours.

Genocide by the Cylons kicks in within the first 30 minutes, after we've been introduced to everyone and their situations. Spend the next 60 to 80 minutes with the humans desperately escaping/fighting the Cylons. End with a denouement that resolves the Cylon situation (peace or extinction) and lands the humans on Earth. Roll credits.

If not that, then trilogies are all the rage, in which case the first film can be about the initial attack and the ragtag fleet's escape, with hints that the Cylons are still in pursuit. Second film would probably be a great opportunity to tell the Pegasus story, which is really one of the best stories in the BSG mythos. Third movie can be the quest for Earth.

Plotting this stuff out isn't that hard. It's writing all the beats, drawing memorable characters, and pacing each scene well that will make or break it, and then you have directing, acting, and effects to worry about, any of which can ruin what was otherwise a good script.

Just have some imagination about it. Yes, you can tell BSG's story in a 2 hour movie, it just won't be exactly the same story you got before.

 

[Mudd]

Well, this should be entertaining. Expect it to have as little to do with Moore's version as his did with oldBSG. Character names like "Apollo" <snicker> will surely recur yet again, though.

It's oddly satisfying and ironic to see the Variety piece illustrated with a photograph from the Ron Moore version.

No reason that the premise can't work for a big movie franchise. The essential premise is Guys In Big-ass Spaceships Fighting Killer Robots After The End Of The World. At this point there must be places in there somewhere for Will Smith and Tom Cruise. Maybe Dwayne Johnson, too.

Funniest line in the Variety article:

Original series creator Glen Larson will produce the “Battlestar Galactica” film.

Of course he is! Time for Glen to slide in, collect his cut and go sit quietly in the corner yet again.

 

[RAMA]

As much as id like a new space based movie franchise any space franchise is a good one at this point.

 

[Captaindemotion]

This could go either way. I never envisaged the TV remake being the best sci-fi TV show ever but for my money it was. Hard to see this project being better than moore's show but I'd settle for it being an entertaining outing. Fingers crossed.

 

[dansigal]

I find it incredibly funny and hypocritical that anyone who was a fan of the nuBSG would say that this concept doesn't lend itself to a movie. There was so much initial hostility to that version just because it was going to be different than the original. So this version, whatever they need to do to make it into a successful movie will be also different than what came before. If nuBSG has taught us anything, it's that the concept (and really any concept) can be made into something great no matter how different it is from what's come before, so long as it's done well.

 

[Galileo7]

This could go either way. I never envisaged the TV remake being the best sci-fi TV show ever but for my money it was. Hard to see this project being better than moore's show but I'd settle for it being an entertaining outing. Fingers crossed.

Agree. I am glad that they are trying to do it again as a motion picture since we have had the two tv series.

 

[C.E. Evans]

I think a movie, in theory, is fine. But I think the recent TV series will still be too fresh in people's minds. There's no element of nostalgia. It'll just seem like a random name borrowing for their sci-fi movie.

Battlestar Galactica really isn't a household name when you think about it. Yeah, it's well-entrenched in geek culture, but I think it's still less known outside of that than Star Trek or Star Wars. It's very plausible that there are many who have never even heard of Battlestar Galactica before, or may never have paid serious attention to it before.

I think the premise is nicely suited to a movie, especially a trilogy. Both series got bogged down with having to stretch and explain the Cylon harassment over the long haul. I think BSG has two big moments: the Cylon holocaust and finding Earth. Both can be done memorably in the movie(s) without having to add all the oddball stuff in the middle.

I agree. It's just a case of adapting the material to the format. TV requires an expansion of the premise to fill out seasons of episodes, while a movie would require a more get-to-the-point approach.

I kind of doubt that a BSG movie would be a done-in-one thing (unless it flops at the box office), so it's likely to be just the first in three or more movies, anyway, IMO.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

^ Well, it's not universally well-loved, but I'd be hard-pressed not to find someone who at least doesn't know it exists.

I find it incredibly funny and hypocritical that anyone who was a fan of the nuBSG would say that this concept doesn't lend itself to a movie. There was so much initial hostility to that version just because it was going to be different than the original. So this version, whatever they need to do to make it into a successful movie will be also different than what came before. If nuBSG has taught us anything, it's that the concept (and really any concept) can be made into something great no matter how different it is from what's come before, so long as it's done well.

What about my argument that it doesn't lend itself to two movies?

If not that, then trilogies are all the rage, in which case the first film can be about the initial attack and the ragtag fleet's escape, with hints that the Cylons are still in pursuit. Second film would probably be a great opportunity to tell the Pegasus story, which is really one of the best stories in the BSG mythos. Third movie can be the quest for Earth.

Sure, but it could be awkward if they don't get approved for that second movie.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Sure, but it could be awkward if they don't get approved for that second movie.

I'm not so sure. The original series was more about the quest for Earth than finding it, and nuBSG was too, until the very last episode. The filmmakers might "gamble" on an ending for the first film that had the ragtag fugitive fleet going off on their lonely quest for that shining planet. That, after all, was the constant of the original series.

 

[C.E. Evans]

^ Well, it's not universally well-loved, but I'd be hard-pressed not to find someone who at least doesn't know it exists.

Among dedicated sci-fi fans, sure, but for everyone else it would still be something either unfamiliar or just something they've only heard mentioned in passing.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I wasn't talking about dedicated sci-fi fans. I thought it was clear from the context of our conversation.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

It's a foregone conclusion that the film will be intended to attract people who have seen none of the series, and the more, the better.

 

[BillJ]

Since I was disappointed in the Moore version (I liked the original better), I'll give this one a shot. But it'll likely have little to do with either of the prior versions beyond the broad strokes.