Babylon 5 reboot likely to become big-budget film
Original series creator will pen the script, possibly finance the film.
According to a report from TV Wise, Babylon 5 showrunner J. Michael Straczynski will shortly begin work on a rebooted big-screen version of his 1990s sci-fi TV series. Straczynski made the announcement at San Diego Comic-Con last week.…
According to JMS’s latest announcement, the new script will be targeted at a 2016 theatrical release and will be a reboot of the series rather than a continuation. This is necessary for both dramatic and practical purposes—the series was in regular production from 1994-1998, and the cast has simply aged too far to credibly play themselves again during the series’ main timeline. Additionally, several of the foundational cast members—Michael O’Hare, Andreas Katsulas, Richard Biggs, and Jeff Conaway—have passed away.
However, JMS reportedly said he would attempt to use the original cast members in whatever ways he could, including potentially having series anchor Bruce Boxleitner play the president of the Earth Alliance (though as B5 fans know, exactly which president JMS is talking about would have a tremendous impact on Boxleitner’s role).
The movie rights to the Babylon 5 property remain in JMS’s hands, but the creator is hopeful that this time around, Warner Bros. will choose to finance the film instead of passing on it. Nonetheless (at least according to TV Wise), JMS is prepared to fund the movie through his own production company if necessary—something that wasn’t a possibility ten years ago—suggesting that B5 will in fact come to the big screen at last.