Syfy today announced a diverse slate of upcoming projects, including new series “No Place,” “High Moon,” “Helix,” an untitled horror anthology show from Jamie Foxx and many more. The network is also developing miniseries adaptations of both Larry Niven’s “Ringworld” and Arthur C. Clarke’s “Childhood’s End.”
For “No Place,” Syfy will join creative forces with Fox Television Studios, Academy Award-winning director/producer Robert Zemeckis, producers Jack Rapke and Jackie Levine, and feature film writing team John Brancato and Michael Ferris (Terminator Salvation, The Game). Zemeckis and Rapke will serve as executive producers along with Brancato and Ferris who will write the pilot.
In “No Place,” residents of a high-tech gated community awaken one morning to find themselves alone and cut off from the rest of reality – nothing exists beyond the community’s walls. Only one man has contact with the powers responsible for what is known as “The Rift,” and he must lead his fellow residents beyond the void to discover the truth.
Circle of Confusion will also produce the project with David Alpert (“The Walking Dead”) and Rick Jacobs as executive producers. Matt Hawkins and Marc Silvestri serve as executive producers for Top Cow.
“We are very excited to be in business with this amazing A-list team,” said Stern. “We look forward to them bringing their high-quality feature-level sensibility to this taut sci-fi drama.”
“No Place” is based on the Top Cow comic book “The Test” by Matt Hawkins and Joshua Hale Fialkov, with illustrations by Rahsan Ekedal.
“High Moon” is an adaptation of John Christopher’s best-selling novel “The Lotus Caves.” Along with a creative team featuring Bryan Fuller (“Hannibal,” “Pushing Daisies”) and Jim Danger Gray (“Pushing Daisies,” “Hannibal”), Universal Cable Productions will serve as the studio.
“High Moon” is an imaginative, out-of-this-world series exploring what happens when the countries of Earth establish colonies to mine the Moon’s resources and discover a new form of life. Chaos erupts in a genuinely emotional, humorously thrilling and always unexpected fashion as the people of the Moon race to uncover this life form’s powerful secrets.
Said Stern: “In the hands of visionary Bryan Fuller and this outstanding production team, ‘High Moon’ will be an imaginative, groundbreaking story featuring complex characters in a high-stakes drama. This represents our commitment to quality programming that redefines the genre and we’re excited to begin production.”
The untitled Foxx anthology is set up through the actor’s Foxxhole Productions. He will executive produce, write and direct the five-episode horror anthology series. Universal Cable Productions will produce the series.
In the vein of television classics like “Tales from the Crypt” and “The Twilight Zone,” this contemporary half-hour series tells creepy morality tales with themes such as envy, jealousy and superficiality. The show will debut during Syfy’s annual 31 Days of Halloween programming marathon this October.
Said Foxx: “This is a project that I’ve wanted to do for a long time and I’m so happy to see it come to life. Get ready to lose it when some special friends and I bring the scares this October, and who knows… maybe I’ll make a guest appearance or two along the way!”
Said Stern, “We couldn’t be more excited to work with someone as talented and multifaceted as Jamie Foxx. His passion and unique perspective will transform these universal insights on the human condition into emotionally potent and truly scary cautionary tales.”
Troy Miller (“Flight of the Conchords,” “Brand X”) will serve as executive producer through his production company Dakota Pictures. Writers on the project include Mike Ferris (Terminator Salvation) and John Pogue (“Army Wives,” “Everwood”) . Writer Jeff Stilson, Jaime King and Julie Yorn will also serve as executive producers.
“Helix” will follow a team of scientists who investigate a possible disease outbreak in an Arctic research facility and find themselves trying to protect the world from annihilation. Cameron Porsandeh will series as co-executive producer and writer with Ronald D. Moore (“Battlestar Galactica”) executive producing alongside Steven Maeda (“Lost,” “CSI: Miami”)and Lynda Obst (Contact).
The two miniseries, meanwhile, join the previously-announced adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s “The Man in the High Castle” from Scott Free Productions.
In “Ringworld,” a hastily-assembled team of explorers travels to the farthest reaches of space to investigate a mind-blowing alien artifact called Ringworld – an artificial habitat the size of one million Earths. As they crash land on this enormous structure, they discover the remnants of ancient civilizations, technology beyond their wildest dreams, mysteries that shed light on the very origins of man and, most importantly, a possible salvation for a doomed Earth.
Adapted by writer Michael Perry (“The River,” Paranormal Activity 2), “Ringworld” is based on Niven’s best-selling book and is being developed as a four-hour mini-series Syfy event. The project is a co-production of MGM Television and Universal Cable Productions (UCP), with MGM as the lead studio. Executive producers are William S. Todman Jr. and Edward Milstein.
“Childhood’s End” follows a peaceful alien invasion of Earth by the mysterious Overlords, whose arrival ends all war and turns the planet into a near-utopia.
In making the announcement, Stern, said: “We’re proud to bring to life these science fiction masterpieces, ‘Ringworld’ and ‘Childhood’s End.’ With their brilliant scope of imagination, the astonishing visions of these two novels created riveting possibilities into the future of humanity which remain timely and provocative.”
“Childhood’s End” will be executive produced by Michael DeLuca (The Social Network) with Universal Cable Productions serving as the studio.
Other newly-announced series include the following:
“Dominion” (working title) – In this series (formerly called “Legion”), 20 years after evil angels descended from heaven to lay waste to the human souls they felt God had favored over them, a reluctant “savior” must arise to protect Vega, the last remaining stronghold of humanity. The savior has more to fear than just angels, as the elites of this new society conspire to gain power for themselves. Writer/CO-EP: Vaun Wilmott (“Sons of Anarchy”). Director/EP: Scott Stewart (Defiance). EP: David Lancaster. Based on the feature film Legion, produced by Bold Films.
“Orion” -In this space opera Orion, an adventurous female relic hunter, tracks down valuable artifacts while trying to piece together her past. Set amidst an intergalactic war pitting humans against a terrifying alien race, Orion must decide whether to use her abilities to save herself or commit to the cause and unearth long hidden artifacts that could free all of humanity from a horrible fate. Executive producers/writers: Ron Milbauer & Terri Hughes Burton (Alphas). Co-executive producers: George Krstic & Ryuhei Kitamura. Supervising producer: F.J. Desanto.
“Sojourn” — The first detective ever in space is tasked with investigating a murder on a starship — headed to colonize another planet – and instead becomes embroiled in a vast conspiracy involving a mysterious terrible crime dating back to the original launch of the ship 50 years ago. Writer: Phil Levens (“Smallville”). Producer: Jason Blum (Paranormal Activity).
“Clandestine” – After a clan of bandits are nearly destroyed and left for dead by Coalition forces, they take refuge in the nearest safe haven, a derelict Coalition starship floating in space. Once onboard, they masquerade as Coalition officers while continuing their criminal ways – until they stumble upon a shocking realization about the true nature of the Coalition. Writers: Todd Stashwick & Dennis Calero. Executive producers: Gale Anne Hurd (The Walking Dead) and John Shiban (Hell on Wheels).
“Infinity” — When an alien armada is sighted in the region of Pluto, the Earth government turns to a young billionaire industrialist — who has the only ship ready for interstellar travel — to greet the aliens and avoid a catastrophe. Powered by secret alien technology discovered on Earth in the 1960’s, the ship engages in a firefight that sends them spinning through a wormhole into an uncharted region of space. Lost in the universe, the team struggles to survive as they encounter new planets and alien species, searching for a way back home. Writer: Javier Grillo-Marxuach (“Lost”). Producer: Berman/Braun Television.
“Silver Shields” — When his father is slain by assassins connected to the government of the large nearby city of Pont Royal, farm boy Caymer journeys there to continue his father’s legacy as a member of the local police force — and to solve the mystery of his father’s death. He discovers that his simple country view on life is at odds with the big city, filled with orcs and other magical creatures. Executive producer/writer: Robert Hewitt Wolfe (“Alphas”). Producer: Aaron Kaplan.
“Shelter” – A massive meteorite is headed toward Earth, forcing 30,000 hand-picked humans to live underground in a government funded shelter in order to start a new society. What begins as a Utopia quickly succumbs to the old human faults and jealousies as certain members of society create alliances to gain favor and power. Meanwhile things on the surface are not what they seem. Humans slowly realize that this event may have been fated and the survivors meant for a greater purpose in rebooting life on Earth. Executive producer/writer: Bruce Joel Rubin (Deep Impact) and co-executive producer/writer Ari Rubin.
“Untitled Alfonso Moreno Project” — After a meteorite strikes a plane, the only two survivors find themselves sleepwalking and waking up with no memory of their actions. On the run from the government, they must figure out what happened to them and prove their innocence. Executive producers: Alfonso Moreno (“NCIS”) & Ross Fineman (“Lights Out”).
