JMS teases Babylon 5 feature film at Comic-Con

[RJDiogenes]

Now that TNT is having success with original productions like Falling Skies, they should redeem themselves by backing a new B5 spin-off series.

Too bad that it's too late to resume Crusade. That would have been a great series.

I would much rather watch a reboot of Crusade than the train wreck that Falling Skies currently is. Unfortunately, I doubt the suits see or ever saw things the same way as me.

I'm still enjoying Falling Skies, but I would definitely trade it for Crusade. And the suits at TNT are probably all different now.

Suggestion: Go watch the recent remake of the "Space battleship Yamato" series entitled:

"Space battleship Yamato 2199" <--- It's basically the same story as in JMS' "Crusade" - just executed and told better.

Burn!

Since this addresses a point several people have brought up, here's what JMS recently posted on facebook regarding the proposed B5 movie's budget: -

Also, to clarify a point: the plan, because we may have 2-3 series on the air (counting Sense8) next year, with so many in development, plus a feature or two, we feel pretty confident that we can get 100-200M in funding from various investors. That will put us in a position to do a B5 movie in 2016 if WB chooses not to step up. The budget would be in the 80-100M range, not 100-200M, that's a miscue that's getting propagated around the net. The latter figure is what we'd hope to get in total investment should all go as planned.

Basically, they think the company in general can raise 100-200M from investors. The B5 movie itself would be made for about half that.

He's a brilliant negotiator. Nobody from the WB probably reads Facebook.

 

[RoJoHen]

A 100 million budget?! B5 is my all time favorite show but that is just deluded.

The perfect example would be Serenity. A big budget followup to a cult hit sci-fi tv series that was very popular with very few people but was cancelled because not that many people watched it. It came out just 2.5 years after the show ended, when there was still a general interest.

Budget: 39 million.
International Gross: 38 million.

That's bad.

And B5 went off the air in 1998. Sixteen years ago.

Plus, B5 actually had a good run...and an ending. A damn good ending. It's not some random cult show that was cancelled before its time. It was given a very solid conclusion, arguably one of the best series finales of all time. We don't need any more of it.

The only way I can see a B5 movie working today is for it to be a total reboot of the franchise. I could see the Shadow War being rebooted into a trilogy of movies, but I'm not sure I'd want it done.

 

[MacLeod]

No. Following that logic it's possible for an obscure or long fallow IP to make a massive financial comeback. Who dose it or what the fans think of it is immaterial. It's a precedent, not an allegory.

More people watched Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek when they failed on network television than watched Babylon 5 when it succeeded on PTEN, of course. And, both revivals had the backing of a major studio behind them.

And? How many of NuBSG's audience was made up of those that watched the original series when it first aired? Not many I'd wager. Most were very likely new to the franchise and probably had only heard of it in vague way most people hear about old shows that nobody watches or talks about any more.

Holds hands up, I remember watching BSG when it first aired on this side of the pond.

 

[VST]

Babylon 5 was one of the great shows of the 90's, most people are well aware of that, and JMS is a truly great creative far beyond even his own creation.

BUT… unless he's given a decent pot of money, I'd rather he let this lie. That's assuming it ever happens and, like others, I'm quite sceptical.

 

[Triple-F]

This isn't wishful thinking. Now you may think it's bullshit, fine, that's you're prerogative. But just keep in mind that whatever you think about this guy, he's not known for bullshitting his fans like this. Quite the opposite.

………. Yeah. jms can be such a reasonable character. As long as you hold that thought. Stray too far from the recommended path, dig a little too deeply though and the insults start, quickly followed by a threat of a 6 figure law suit.

 

[Reverend]

More people watched Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek when they failed on network television than watched Babylon 5 when it succeeded on PTEN, of course. And, both revivals had the backing of a major studio behind them.

And? How many of NuBSG's audience was made up of those that watched the original series when it first aired? Not many I'd wager. Most were very likely new to the franchise and probably had only heard of it in vague way most people hear about old shows that nobody watches or talks about any more.

Holds hands up, I remember watching BSG when it first aired on this side of the pond.

OK, so that's a grand total on ONE so far!

Seriously though, my point here in that like B5, BSG had slid out of most people's awareness and into a cult status where the only new fans were the niche audiences that seek out old and increasingly obscure sci-fi shows.

Oh and for the record, I didn't see BSG when it first came out. A few years too young. I did grow up with the A-Team though, so my first impression when encountering a BSG repeat was "Face is in a Star Wars rip-off!"

Babylon 5 was one of the great shows of the 90's, most people are well aware of that, and JMS is a truly great creative far beyond even his own creation.

BUT… unless he's given a decent pot of money, I'd rather he let this lie. That's assuming it ever happens and, like others, I'm quite sceptical.

$80-100 million isn't "a decent pot of money"? I mean sure, it's not the budget of Avatar 2 or Episode VII, but it's respectable enough for a mid-budget VFX heavy feature. Hell, 'Dredd' only cost something like 40-50 million and that was one of the best sci-fi action movies in years. (Yes, I know it wasn't profitable, that's besides the point.)

What matters is what they do with the money and we have no clue what the plot could possibly be. However, given JMS's history of being very responsible with the budget (it's half the reason WB more or less left them alone for four years) so I've no doubt he'll design the script with that budget in mind.

 

[Jan]

………. Yeah. jms can be such a reasonable character. As long as you hold that thought. Stray too far from the recommended path, dig a little too deeply though and the insults start, quickly followed by a threat of a 6 figure law suit.

Prove that. Show me the public record. Never happened.
Jan

 

[Marsden]

. Hell, 'Dredd' only cost something like 40-50 million and that was one of the best sci-fi action movies in years.

Dredd was Awsome! I love that movie.

 

[VST]

It again comes down to changing tastes really, as we've been discussing in another thread recently.

Granted with a fair few million JMS could probably make something decent enough, but as a theatrically-released movie I think B5 would struggle, unless the concept was rebooted. In terms of TV, if JMS tried to pull the same budgetary tricks as in the 90's (or even with the latest stuff), in these days of Game of Thrones or Hannibal etc… looking gloriously cinematic in HD, B5 would look horrendously cheap.

People's tastes & expectations have changed to a point I don't think JMS could make the B5 anymore we love.

 

[Reverend]

………. Yeah. jms can be such a reasonable character. As long as you hold that thought. Stray too far from the recommended path, dig a little too deeply though and the insults start, quickly followed by a threat of a 6 figure law suit.

Prove that. Show me the public record. Never happened.
Jan

Yeah, there's been a number of insinuations like this in the thread with a whole lot of nothing to back it up.

Put up or shut up guys.

. Hell, 'Dredd' only cost something like 40-50 million and that was one of the best sci-fi action movies in years.

Dredd was Awsome! I love that movie.

Me too. Damn shame it did so poorly at the box office. I just hope the home video sales are enough to make them want to do a sequel and actually promote it this time!

It again comes down to changing tastes really, as we've been discussing in another thread recently.

Granted with a fair few million JMS could probably make something decent enough, but as a theatrically-released movie I think B5 would struggle, unless the concept was rebooted. In terms of TV, if JMS tried to pull the same budgetary tricks as in the 90's (or even with the latest stuff), in these days of Game of Thrones or Hannibal etc… looking gloriously cinematic in HD, B5 would look horrendously cheap.

People's tastes & expectations have changed to a point I don't think JMS could make the B5 anymore we love.

Here's the thing though, if Studio JMS are the one's footing the bill then they have nobody to answer to directly as they would if a big studio was bankrolling the film. Sure, if it's a disaster and they loose a lot of money then the investors will have something to say, but that's true of any business venture.

I would imagine that another upshot of going it alone is that assuming the movie makes money, Studio JMS would get larger slice of the profits, thus it doesn't have to be as profitable to be a financial success. I could be wrong in that assesment though.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Would using the same special effects be much cheaper because newer computers can do that shit in their sleep, newer Iphones can do that shit in their sleep... Or would modern special effects be as alienating as the difference between Star Trek the Original Series and Star Trek Enterprise?

 

[Shaka Zulu]

I know fans will throw shit at me for saying this but I hope it's completely recast. I'd prefer a reboot as I doubt the surviving cast could carry a movie.

I won't throw shit at you-I agree with you. I've been thinking the same thing about Ghostbusters myself. When a franchise has to reboot and get new actors, it has to reboot and get new actors-that's all there is to it.

 

[Reverend]

Would using the same special effects be much cheaper because newer computers can do that shit in their sleep, newer Iphones can do that shit in their sleep... Or would modern special effects be as alienating as the difference between Star Trek the Original Series and Star Trek Enterprise?

Well B5 already got a brief VFX upgrade as recently as seven years ago (on a VERY modest budget) and it seemed to make the transition with the old aesthetic essentially intact. On the other hand, if it's going to be a reboot they might redesign everything again from the ground up, so who knows what it'll end up looking like?

I know fans will throw shit at me for saying this but I hope it's completely recast. I'd prefer a reboot as I doubt the surviving cast could carry a movie.

I won't throw shit at you-I agree with you. I've been thinking the same thing about Ghostbusters myself. When a franchise has to reboot and get new actors, it has to reboot and get new actors-that's all there is to it.

Nobody is saying anything to the contrary. Indeed, that's the implication behind recasting the old guard in supporting roles and cameos. For example; while Boxleitner is playing President of the EA, someone else needs to be playing Sheridan/Sinclair. That's where the new people come in.

 

[Shaka Zulu]

Tron: Legacy's failure is proof enough of that.

Such a failure, and yet, a sequel's in the planning stages: Garrett Hedlund Set for ‘TRON: Legacy’ Sequel; Production in 2014?

 

[Ryan Thomas Riddle]

After the failure of 'Enterprise', Star Trek was seen as an essentially dead franchise until JJ Abrams brought it back with a vengeance.

Yes, but "Star Trek" still was (and is) part of the pop culture consciousness — even those who don't know much about Trek or have never watched in episode recognize its iconography, much like Superman and Batman. This is especially true for the original "Star Trek," which is what Abrams and Bad Robot chose to resurrect.

As much as I have an affinity for "Babylon 5", it's not as much part of that consciousness. It certainly had a heyday when it was originally airing — I attended all the SDCC panels while the show was going and each year the room got bigger and more packed.

That's not to say the show can't come back. Your BSG example is perfect. However, the comparison to "Star Trek" isn't.

Actually, I'd be up for a reboot —*but I'd want it to be a very different story from the original, or even just be an anthology series set on the station, that would explore more of the "100 stories in the city" motif, which is why I tend to prefer rewatching the first few seasons more than the latter ones.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Joke I once heard: "I haven't seen the first two movies, so do you think that I'm going to understand Richard III?"

 

[Tulin]

Not gonna happen.

 

[C.E. Evans]

Tron: Legacy's failure is proof enough of that.

Such a failure, and yet, a sequel's in the planning stages: Garrett Hedlund Set for ‘TRON: Legacy’ Sequel; Production in 2014?

Yeah, Tron: Legacy wasn't a failure. The planned sequel, unfortunately, is a victim of bad timing with Disney focusing more on Star Wars and the various Marvel movies right now, IMO.

 

[Harvey]

No. Following that logic it's possible for an obscure or long fallow IP to make a massive financial comeback. Who dose it or what the fans think of it is immaterial. It's a precedent, not an allegory.

More people watched Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek when they failed on network television than watched Babylon 5 when it succeeded on PTEN, of course. And, both revivals had the backing of a major studio behind them.

And? How many of NuBSG's audience was made up of those that watched the original series when it first aired? Not many I'd wager. Most were very likely new to the franchise and probably had only heard of it in vague way most people hear about old shows that nobody watches or talks about any more.

The key point being both revivals had the backing of a major studio behind them.

An $80-100 million movie is more plausible than a $100-200 million movie, but JMS will still need a major star or two to get a project of that size off the ground (especially an independent one). Cloud Atlas managed to get off the ground (barely) with the Wachowskis behind the camera, and Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, and Hugh Grant in front of it.

None of that is impossible and yes, I think the idea is likely to include casting one or two well known faces. It seems like his idea for the original cast are to put them in support roles rather than cast the whole movie with them alone.

The fact that the involvement of three major stars and a major directing team barely got the $102 million science fiction made speaks pretty loudly to the obstacles JMS will have to face getting his similarly budgeted Babylon 5 movie made.

Also, although Cloud Atlas was nominally independent, Warner Bros. agreed to distribute the film early, used their clout to get it a wide release, and kicked in $20 million of the film's production budget.

JMS can talk all he wants about being able to raise $100 million to make a movie (plus another $40 million for prints and advertising, apparently), but I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[Takeru]

$80-100 million isn't "a decent pot of money"?

No, as long as it's only imaginary money JMS believes he can raise it's not "a decent pot of money", it's nothing!

You can talk about Dredd costing $40-50 million all day long but JMS hasn't even raised that much and if he did it would be a pretty crummy looking B5 movie, Dredd was primarily set in a locked down building for a reason.