JMS's supposed coming announcement at Comic-con 2012

[Lighthammer]

So a friend dumped this on me:

http://m.deadline.com/2012/07/comic-con-j-michael-straczynski-hatches-multi-platform-studio-jms/

Patrician Tallman is working directly with JMS.

This --- this just seems like all the pieces are falling into place.

I've been pretty skeptical about a lot of my talk in the last few days about B5 and some potential ideas --- it was really more just fantasy then anything. However, this article really makes it sound like something big is happening.

I think I might be getting cautiously excited at what this might mean.

 

[Sindatur]

Probably just wishful thinking. Because of the Studio, we now have a legitimate excuse for Pat Tallman and him spending so much time together, and an answer as to what her new job is. There's been explanations too for Walter Koenig, Bruce Boxleitner, Mira Furlan and Bill Mumy hanging out with him too.

I would love to see him be able to put out some more B5, but, I'm resisting the urge to be hopeful, hopefully until something is actually on film, since the funding has dropped out so many times on "sure things" over the last 10 years

 

[Lighthammer]

I hear you --- this is all information that is just adding up but we've been let down so many times in the past that its really hard to actually subscribe fully to something happening till we get more info.

This is all getting promising though.

 

[Kegg]

^
Maybe some of those actors will have a role in Vlad Dracula?

I can't remember much about the pilot for Spartacus: Blood and Sand;

It was more or less a cheap knockoff of 300 in which people spoke in sentences constructed entirely out of swear words.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I watched the first episode of Spartacus and thought it was shit as well. On a whim caught the first episode of the next season, got hooked and ended up watching all of it. Last season sputtered a bit but the first two seasons of Spartacus are pretty good.

That Vlad show could work, lot of vamprire shows out there, few in the 15th Century. I'm curious about that Incursion as well. Is ComicCon on its way yet? I'm ready for all the announcements of new projects.

 

[PsychoPere]

So a friend dumped this on me:
http://m.deadline.com/2012/07/comic-con-j-michael-straczynski-hatches-multi-platform-studio-jms/

This Deadline article was what the Bleeding Cool article posted above by Admiral_Young was reporting on. The launching of Studio JMS doesn't imply anything about the possibility of new B5 material; it's simply a logical step in JMS's career to have one studio umbrella for all of his various media outputs.

I can't remember much about the pilot for Spartacus: Blood and Sand;

It was more or less a cheap knockoff of 300 in which people spoke in sentences constructed entirely out of swear words.

The Spartacus pilot was so godawful that I couldn't stand to watch more than ten minutes of it, and so never bothered to watch any more of it even with Netflix insisting I would like it.

 

[doubleohfive]

Again - your mileage varies and you're missing out.

 

[sidious618]

I've enjoyed a bit of JMS' work so I'm definitely going to check it out. Incursion sounds very intriguing, too.

 

[Sho]

It was sad when both did, but in respects to this story, to the best of my knowledge, neither are really big parts of this story and certainly not to the point that that their roles couldn't be allocated to others.

I'm pretty sure that JMS has said a few times he'd never recast those roles. Didn't he even consider putting a movie project on hold when Biggs passed away?

 

[Sindatur]

It was sad when both did, but in respects to this story, to the best of my knowledge, neither are really big parts of this story and certainly not to the point that that their roles couldn't be allocated to others.

I'm pretty sure that JMS has said a few times he'd never recast those roles. Didn't he even consider putting a movie project on hold when Biggs passed away?

Yes, The Memory of Shadows included either G'Kar or Franklin, and he didn't have the emotional strength to write around him after he passed on, so, the script went into a drawer, rather than rewriting it to be used at a later date, if funding resurfaced.

When he was speaking about the reboot possibilities, he said some roles of those who have passed on, would not be re-used/recast. Specifically he mentioned G'Kar, he would not use the character G'Kar. G'Kar would be elevated to a mythical/historical figure such as G'Quon or G'Lan, and a new character would be inserted to play the role that G'Kar would typically be used for.

 

[ManOnTheWave]

^
Maybe some of those actors will have a role in Vlad Dracula?

I find that infinitely more likely than a secret B5 project to come hot on the heels of the last secret B5 project that got the rug pulled out from under it. JMS was apparently getting old B5 actors to appear in supporting roles for the new never to happen now reboot, so he's probably throwing parts to them in his new project. If so, good on him.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Mira Furlan would work for a vamp show in Eastern Europe.

 

[OmahaStar]

Probably just wishful thinking. Because of the Studio, we now have a legitimate excuse for Pat Tallman and him spending so much time together, and an answer as to what her new job is.

They've been a couple for some time now. What more "legitimate excuse" do we require?

Also - new weekly JMS ... Actually, more than one.

Studio JMS
Vlad Dracula
Living Dead: The musical
Falling Angel comic
Ten Grand comic
Guardians comic
Sidekick comic
The Majestic Files comic

Also mentioned have been previously announced projects:
Epidemic
Vanishing Point
Shattered Union

*List thanks to the gorgeous and supremely awesome JanMS*

 

[Tom]

Well we having JMS and some of the B5 actors at Walter's Star Ceremony in Hollywood on September 9-10th so I will see if i can dig any more info up for you guys

http://www.planetxpo.com

 

[Timby]

Yes, The Memory of Shadows included either G'Kar or Franklin, and he didn't have the emotional strength to write around him after he passed on, so, the script went into a drawer, rather than rewriting it to be used at a later date, if funding resurfaced.

Biggs had been dead for half a year (he passed in May 2004) when the announcement of The Memory of Shadows' production went out in December 2004, to be helmed by Steven Beck with filming set to begin in April 2005. The project dead-ended in February 2005 after the financing fell apart -- Biggs' passing had nothing to do with it.

 

[OmahaStar]

Yes, The Memory of Shadows included either G'Kar or Franklin, and he didn't have the emotional strength to write around him after he passed on, so, the script went into a drawer, rather than rewriting it to be used at a later date, if funding resurfaced.

Balls. Biggs had been dead for half a year (he passed in May 2004) when the announcement of The Memory of Shadows' production went out in December 2004, to be helmed by Steven Beck with filming set to begin in April 2005. The project dead-ended in February 2005 after the financing fell apart -- Biggs' passing had nothing to do with it.

When JMS sold B5 to Warners, the only rights he kept were theatrical. They have the rights to everything else - merchandising, television, etc. That means JMS is free to to a theatrical motion picture of B5 with or without Warner Bros' involvement.

Someone came along with a wad of cash and offered it to JMS to do MoS. It didn't go so well. My suspician - and I say this as someone who has not read the script - is that JMS was not happy with the project as a whole, and is happy it never went anywhere.

If an excuse did come out that it was because of an actor passing, it was probably someone trying to paint a pretty picture on it. The man is a mad genius. He can do brilliance (see: Severed Dreams), but he's also done Infection.

He has the complete rights to the script. If he was happy with it, wouldn't he have already released it through his scriptbooks? Think about it.

 

[Sindatur]

Probably just wishful thinking. Because of the Studio, we now have a legitimate excuse for Pat Tallman and him spending so much time together, and an answer as to what her new job is.

They've been a couple for some time now. What more "legitimate excuse" do we require?

Also - new weekly JMS ... Actually, more than one.

Studio JMS
Vlad Dracula
Living Dead: The musical
Falling Angel comic
Ten Grand comic
Guardians comic
Sidekick comic
The Majestic Files comic

Also mentioned have been previously announced projects:
Epidemic
Vanishing Point
Shattered Union

*List thanks to the gorgeous and supremely awesome JanMS*

I had no idea they were a couple.

 

[Sindatur]

Yes, The Memory of Shadows included either G'Kar or Franklin, and he didn't have the emotional strength to write around him after he passed on, so, the script went into a drawer, rather than rewriting it to be used at a later date, if funding resurfaced.

Balls. Biggs had been dead for half a year (he passed in May 2004) when the announcement of The Memory of Shadows' production went out in December 2004, to be helmed by Steven Beck with filming set to begin in April 2005. The project dead-ended in February 2005 after the financing fell apart -- Biggs' passing had nothing to do with it.

When JMS sold B5 to Warners, the only rights he kept were theatrical. They have the rights to everything else - merchandising, television, etc. That means JMS is free to to a theatrical motion picture of B5 with or without Warner Bros' involvement.

Someone came along with a wad of cash and offered it to JMS to do MoS. It didn't go so well. My suspician - and I say this as someone who has not read the script - is that JMS was not happy with the project as a whole, and is happy it never went anywhere.

If an excuse did come out that it was because of an actor passing, it was probably someone trying to paint a pretty picture on it. The man is a mad genius. He can do brilliance (see: Severed Dreams), but he's also done Infection.

He has the complete rights to the script. If he was happy with it, wouldn't he have already released it through his scriptbooks? Think about it.

Yea, the funding going belly up was definitely what killed it, but, I'm pretty sure I remember someone was written into the script who had passed away, and he said he wasn't emotionally able to use the script for a future project because of that passing

 

[Yoda]

He has the complete rights to the script. If he was happy with it, wouldn't he have already released it through his scriptbooks? Think about it.

What, you think if it wasn't complete shit he'd make an overpriced NEVER TO BE AVAILABLE AGAIN LIMITED EDITION book?!!?!?!

Speaking of which, I guess JMS noticed that someone was *GASP* making a PROFIT off of his WORK with script books on ebay!!! And now all of a sudden more are available! You just have to enter the lottery, you fucking plebs!

I actually might enter. Wouldn't mind making some cash on ebay in a couple of years right before the next reserve stash of books becomes available for his beloved fans

 

[Reverend]

Yea, the funding going belly up was definitely what killed it, but, I'm pretty sure I remember someone was written into the script who had passed away, and he said he wasn't emotionally able to use the script for a future project because of that passing

If I remember the sequence of events right (Jan will almost certainly correct me if I'm wrong) Franklin was in an early draft (if not the 1st?) and was written out/replaced when Biggs passed away. It wasn't until about a year or so later when Andreas also died that the script was scrapped.

IIRC it was around that time that JMS said something to the effect of his heart not being in the project after loosing them both. There may have been other factors, but if that's what JMS said (and I may indeed be misremembering all this) then I'll take his word for it. Whatever one might think of the man, as far as I can tell he has a pretty good track record of being honest with the fanbase.



As for what the announcement may be; I'd be *astonished* if it was anything B5 related. Partly because they only B5 project that he could possibly announce is a theatrical movie and I think something would have leaked already if that were the case, but mostly because whenever the words "JMS" and "announcement" get within twenty miles of each other, the words "Babylon 5" are not far behind in the collective minds of the fanbase.