Tag: Battlestar Galactica

The acclaimed SyFy show “Battlestar Galactica” aired its final episode nearly two years ago but the deep-space (and deep-thinking) epic was still echoing at WonderCon, the pop-culture expo that opened Friday in Anaheim. The first day of the convention featured two Q&A sessions devoted to the show, one with Richard Hatch, who acted in both the original 1978 series and the re-imagined SyFy series that launched in 2004. The other panel featured Kevin Grazier, the scientific advisor for the more recent show. Grazier, who worked for a time at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, got a foothold in the entertainment business when he co-wrote a ”Star Trek: Voyager” spec script that got him in the pitch process at Paramount. That led to a meeting with “Battlestar” co-creator Ron Moore and, eventually, a gig as scientific advisor. More recently, he’s been a hired brain for Alfonso Cuarón’s ...

Bryan Singer’s “Battlestar Galactica” movie has its screenwriter — John Orloff, who also wrote the Roland Emmerich Shakespeare thriller opening next week, “Anonymous.” “Don’t worry, I’m not gonna frak it up,” said Orloff in an interview, of his take on the storied sci-fi franchise, which “X-Men” director Singer is set to direct for Universal Pictures. “I have a pretty radical take,” Orloff said, declining to offer more details about his treatment of the long-gestating, secrecy-shrouded project. “Battlestar Galactica,” about a human civilization warring with a cybernetic race on a group of distant planets known as the 12 Colonies, began as a short-lived 1970s TV show and has evolved to include comic books, novels, video games and the cult hit Ronald D. Moore series that ran on Syfy from 2004 to 2009. A long time “Battlestar” fan, Orloff has an eclectic ...

Four years before Mickey Mouse made his debut in “Steamboat Willie” in 1928, Walt Disney wrote a letter to his old friend Ub Iwerks, urging him to come to California and join his studio. Iwerks agreed, and the pair soon set about developing Mickey’s personality and bringing him to life on paper. Now, that 1924 letter is on the block, with a pre-sale estimate of $60,000 to $80,000, at a memorabilia auction next weekend. The auction is being held by Profiles in History, run by appraiser Joe Maddalena of “Hollywood Treasure” fame, on May 14-15 at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, as well as online. Among the items up for bid are signed, original animation cels from Disney movies, including the classics “Cinderella” and “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (around $20,000 each). Also on the block: the fully-operational ...

At our sister blog, Show Tracker, Hero Complex stalwart  Jevon Phillips tolls the bell for “Caprica,” a series that aspired to be “Dallas” in space but ended up as the “FlashForward” of cable. Here’s an excerpt.. As a prequel spinoff, “Caprica” has tried in vain to capture the imagination of both new viewers and “Battlestar Galactica” stalwarts — but its journey toward the first Cylon war has been cut short. Syfy has decided not to renew the series for a second season, cutting short the possibility of seeing how Cylons get to fully develop (at least in this series). The recently announced “Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome” will have to carry on the storyline…. THERE’S MORE, READ THE REST – Jevon Phillips RECENT AND RELATED Meet the mystery woman of “Blood & Chrome” “Chrome” takes Adama on secret mission Eick, “Caprica” and ...

Syfy has just announced “Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome,” a two-hour spin-off pilot that  gets back into the Viper with a young version of William Adama and executive producer David Eick. We caught up with the veteran creator to get some early intel on a project that will be getting underway after the first of the year. GB: What can you tell us about where this falls in the mythology? DE: The show takes place when William Adama, the character played by Edward James Olmos in “BSG,” is in his 20s, fresh out of cadet school, on the precipice of experiencing his first taste of combat.  The era — in our mythology – is the threatening, treacherous period known as the First Cylon War, which fans of “Battlestar Galactica” may remember took place over 40 years before the events of “BSG.” ...

GUEST ESSAY The day after Christmas 1973, “The Exorcist” was unleashed upon an unsuspecting world, and Hollywood horror films would never be viewed in quite the same way.  The film is back in the spotlight with the Sept. 30 one-night release of “The Exorcist Extended Director’s Cut”  at more than 450 theaters nationwide and that edition’s Oct. 5 release on Blu-ray in a special high-definition, two-disc set that also includes the original theatrical version. The movie is often called the scariest film of all time, and its influence runs far and deep. One of the devoted disciples of the William Friedkin classic is David Eick, the executive producer of “Battlestar Galactica” and “Caprica,” the acclaimed science-fiction shows that were informed by the merciless, genre-transcendent example of “The Exorcist.” “Well, you know, it’s based on a true story, right?” Those 10 words, spoken to my ...

Moderating a big panel at Comic-Con International is a bit like big-wave surfing — flashes of stomach-wrenching terror and moments of go-with-it thrill. A few hours ago, in front of a few thousand fans in Ballroom 20, I moderated the panel on SyFy’s “Caprica.” The lineup featured four cast members and the show’s co-creator, Ronald D. Moore, and executive producer, David Eick. I don’t how it played in the audience, but from the stage it was an absolute blast – brisk, insightful, funny and candid. Eick brought a bottle of tequila onstage and he and Moore did a few shots at the start of the 11 a.m. panel. The two longtime collaborators were candid and charismatic as they talked about the show’s future (they are optimistic about a second season but it’s not a done deal yet) and analyzed the religious, ethical ...

Oh I like this one. I’m among the people who loved to hear “Sabotage” used in the J.J. Abrams version of “Star Trek” and now the Beastie Boys hit is doing it Colonial-style with this great fan-made montage. Thanks to Geek Girl Diva, a good pal to the Hero Complex, for sending this one our way. Check out her blog if you haven’t lately; it rocks. – Geoff Boucher RECENT AND RELATED Edward James Olmos on the “Blade Runner”/”Battlestar” connection Edward James Olmos: “The Plan” is not the end for “Battlestar” Starbuck speaks! Katee Sackhoff on the end of “BSG” VIDEO: “Battlestar” panel in L.A. with Olmos and McDonnell “Battlestar” finally gets some trophy love PHOTO GALLERY: What’s next for the “Battlestar” cast? So say we all: Inside the cast party for “BSG” finale Kate Vernon on her life as Ellen Tigh, the ...

Mary McNamara, the television critic for the Los Angeles Times, was one of the strongest voices among the chorus of critics who hailed “Battlestar Galactica” and now she has high hopes for the spinoff series, “Caprica,” which begins tonight. But, she writes, the series is off to a bit of a slow start.    In the midst of all its programming woes, NBC has managed to achieve something close to the impossible — a prequel series that should not only please all comers but may expand the demographic of science fiction fans everywhere. Debuting on SyFy (though it could just as easily be moved to that barren 10 p.m. slot on NBC), “ Caprica” is set 58 years before the Cylon wars that propel “ Battlestar Galactica” and tells how the Cylons came to be. The shows may share the same ...

Make sure this is on your DRADIS screen: The two-hour “Battlestar Galactica” movie “The Plan” makes its broadcast premiere Sunday night. Here’s an extended clip from the Cylon-centric movie directed by the admiral himself, Edward James Olmos and starring Tricia Helfer, Grace Park, Michael Hogan, Dean Stockwell, Michael Trucco, Kate Vernon and Olmos himself.   – Geoff Boucher RECENT AND RELATED Edward James Olmos on the “Blade Runner”/”Battlestar” connection Edward James Olmos: “The Plan” is not the end for “Battlestar” Starbuck speaks! Katee Sackhoff on the end of “BSG” VIDEO: “Battlestar” panel in L.A. with Olmos and McDonnell PHOTO GALLERY: What’s next for the “Battlestar” cast? “Battlestar” finally gets some trophy love So say we all: Inside the cast party for “BSG” finale Kate Vernon on her life as Ellen Tigh, the Cylon cougar