Like it or not, what's old is new. And, as it seems that just about every movie/book/game/film is getting an update or being rebooted these days, we here at HNGN thought it would be interesting to explore the science fiction films of the last few decades that should be adapted and brought to the small screen.
There are 15 on this list. Some you may agree with, some you may not...but I have my reasons for selecting each.
15. Zardoz (1974): The plot breaks down as such: In the distant future, Earth is divided into two camps...a barely civilized group and an overly civilized, immortal group gifted with mental powers. A plague is attacking the immortal group, after which its members cease to have any interest in life and become nearly catatonic. When Zed (Connery), one of the barbarians, crosses over, the tenuous balance in their world is torn asunder. In common parlance...the s*** hits the fan, and everything changes for the better of humanity as a whole.
Granted this is a bit of dark horse, but I've always found this film strangely compelling (or maybe I just have a thing for Sean Connery in a red diaper...), and think it could be adapted in the vein of ABC's "Lost" to be something unique and cool; definitely something that SyFy would put on the air. On top of that, it has a giant, floating stone head that's worshipped as a god. What beats a giant, floating stone head? Nothing. Nothing beats a giant, floating stone head.
14. A Boy and His Dog (1975): "A Boy and his Dog" is a post-apocalyptic tale (set after World War 4) based on a novella by science fiction master, Harlan Ellison. A boy named Vic (Don Johnson) communicates telepathically with his dog as they scavenge for food and women. Ultimately, they stumble into an underground society where the "old-timey" life and society is preserved. The daughter of one of the leaders of this community seduces Vic and lures him below, where the citizens have become unable to reproduce because they have lived underground for so long. This warped society plans to use Vic for impregnation purposes, and then plans to be rid of him.
Another cult film that would make an excellent show along the lines of AMC's "The Walking Dead," or even the old classic "Kung Fu" with boy and his sarcastic dog roaming the blown out landscape and getting in adventures, much like Kwai Chang Caine.
13. Space Truckers (1996): The 1996 film follows John Canyon (Dennis Hopper), who happens to be one of the last independent space transport entrepreneurs. Hard times force him to carry suspicious cargo to Earth with no questions asked. During the trek, Canyon and his crew find out the cargo they are hauling is a multitude of unstoppable and lethal robots.
Hey, if there can be a show about ice truckers, there can be a show about space truckers too. And the space truckers are much cooler. The storytelling possibilities here are endless, given the vastness of space and things that can go wrong while attempting to haul cargo through that great void. Also, the potential for humorous and seedy characters (alien or otherwise) is too great to ignore here. Again, this is something that would be right up Syfy's alley.
12. Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato (2010): The overall plot of "Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato" is that Earth has been under attack for several years by an alien planet called Gamilas/Gamelon. These attacks have forced the majority of humanity into underground cities. A distant planet called Iscandar offers the Earth a way to rid the planet of all the radiation, but the Earthlings have to come to Iscandar to get this "cure." The Star Force is formed and sets off on a year-long quest across the galaxy, in their re-purposed for space travel battleship Yamato, to obtain this "cure" and save the Earth.
This is a Japanese film based on a very popular Japanese anime and manga from the late 70's, early 80's which was redubbed and run on American TV when I was a lad. And while this movie adaptation was good, it didn't capture the true "space opera" scope of the original, animated series. If a bold network could capture the essence of the original series and bring that to the small screen, it would most certainly be a hit along the lines of the various "Star Trek" series.
11. Snowpiercer (2013): The film itself is set in 2031, and the entire world is frozen except for those aboard the Snowpiercer. For 17 years, the world's survivors are on a train hurtling around the globe creating their own economy and class system. Led by Curtis, a group of lower-class citizens living in squalor at the back of the train are determined to get to the front of the train and spread the wealth around. Each section of the train holds new surprises for the group who have to battle their way through.
A more recent offering, based on a graphic novel of the same name, which has a very cool premise. I think if a TV version was produced, it would have to be a prequel, showing the events that led up to the ecological disaster that set the perpetual motion train, Snowpiercer, on its way.
10. Outland (1981): A police marshal (Connery again...I must have a thing for him) stationed at a remote mining colony on the Jupiter moon of Io uncovers a drug-smuggling conspiracy. The marshal follows the trail of the dealers, which leads to the man overseeing the colony. Now he must watch his back at every turn, as those who seek to protect their income begin targeting him.
A space western, more or less, with Sean Connery as the lawman. Think of "Bonanza" or "The Rifleman" set on a space-station, and you'll understand my train of thought here. This seems like something AMC or A&E would eat up.
9. Reign of Fire (2002): Basically, a brood of fire-breathing dragons emerges from the Earth and begins setting fire to everything, establishing dominance over the planet. Humans must fight back to reclaim the planet from the nasty beasties.
How and/or why this film wasn't a bigger hit is beyond me. That makes it an even better candidate for a rebirth on the small screen...although it would take the financial muscle of one of the larger networks to make it look right. Think "War of the Worlds" or TNT's "Falling Skies" but with dragons instead of aliens.
8. The Fifth Element (1997): In a vibrant vision of the future, a cab driver (Bruce Willis) unwittingly becomes the central figure in the search for a legendary cosmic weapon to keep an ancient, evil and creepy industrialist Mr. Zorg (Gary Oldman) at bay.
This flick is all over the place in terms of style and narrative, but it does throw the viewer into a cool universe, and it has an interesting enough premise to carry a TV series. But, as I said with "Snowpiercer" I think a prequel would be best here, possibly showing Korben Dallas as the elite commando rather than the cab driver. Although, following the events right after the film (i.e. the continuing adventures of Korben and Leelo) would be rather intriguing as well.
7. Looper (2012): In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent into the past, where a hired gun awaits, someone like Joe (played by both Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis) who one day learns the mob wants to "close the loop"' by sending back Joe's future self for assassination.
A very interesting time-travel based film with a lot of potential for series development. There are a good many gaps in Joe's history that could be filled in by a TV show, or the show could just be set in this universe, focusing on another "Looper" and tell his/her story.
6. Ender's Game (2013): As a young boy, Ender Wiggin is recruited by the International Military to lead the fight against the Formics, a genocidal alien race...which nearly annihilated the human race in a previous invasion.
If Ender's Game was to be adapted as a series, they would most certainly have to draw upon Orson Scott Card's novels (14 all told in the Ender Saga), rather than just the film because that just scratches the surface of this deep and vastly exciting universe. It took an extremely loooong time for "Ender's Game" to be adapted into a film, so I don't see it becoming a series anytime soon...but it would be cool if it was it done correctly.
5. Starship Troopers (1997): Humans in a fascistic, militaristic future battle giant alien bugs in a fight for survival.
"Starship Troopers" is much like "Ender's Game" in that for it to work as TV series, it would need to be taken back to its roots as a novel (written by Robert Heinlien), and not be so bombastic. The novel focused more on politics, varying schools of thought, and what it truly meant to be a "citizen." Also, in the book the humans used personalized mechs/robots to fight the bugs. It would be cool to see those make a comeback in a series. There was an animated "Starship Troopers" series called "Roughnecks" in 2000, but it only ran for one season. I never saw it, so I can't comment on the quality of it in any way.
4. Minority Report (2002): In 2054 a special, "pre-cog" police unit is able to arrest murderers before they commit their crimes. Unfortunately, an officer from that unit (Tom Cruise...at his Tom Cruise-y best) is himself accused of a future murder.
Just think of this as a "CSI: Future World" or "Law and Order: Pre-Crime Unit," and you'll understand why it would work in a big, big way.
3. Aliens (1986): Fifty-seven years after Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) survived her disastrous ordeal (as seen in 1979's "Alien"), her escape pod is recovered drifting through the stars as she slept in cryogenic stasis. Back on earth, no one believes her story about the "Alien" on planet LV-426. After "the "Company" orders an already placed colony on LV-426 to investigate, all communication with the colony is lost. The Company then enlists Ripley to aid a team of rugged Space Marines on a rescue mission to the now partially terraformed planet to find out if there are aliens or survivors. As the mission unfolds, Ripley is forced to come to grips with her worst nightmare, but even as she does, she finds that the worst is yet to come.
As a series, I would envision the focus being on a team of Space Marines (not unlike the ones in the film), jumping from planet to planet to search aliens and protect colonies. Using HBO's "Band of Brothers" as a template and replacing the Nazis with xenomorphs would be the best way to go.
2. Blade Runner (1982): In a cyberpunk vision of the future, man has developed the technology to create replicants, human clones used to serve in the colonies outside Earth but with fixed lifespans. In Los Angeles, 2019, Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) is a Blade Runner, a cop who specializes in terminating replicants. Originally in retirement, he is forced to re-enter the force when four replicants escape from an off-world colony to Earth.
Call the series: "Blade Runner: The Early Years of Rick Deckard," and you'd have ratings monster on your hands. But, it would take deep pockets and a commitment to crafting almost cinema-quality episodes for this to come off well. HBO would be the only place for that, I think.
1. Ghostbusters (1984): Three unemployed parapsychology professors (Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis) set up shop as a unique ghost removal and elimination service. Oh, and New York is almost destroyed by an ancient Sumerian god who becomes a giant marshmallow man.
Every time there is talk about a new "Ghostbusters" film, I get upset because they are clearly missing the potential for a live-action "Ghostbusters" series. Set it in a different city as a lowly franchise that's on the ropes, have Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd (or even Ernie Hudson) show up from time to time to offer advice and/or mentor the people (I loved Murray's idea of female Ghostbusters) running the ailing franchise until they get back on their feet. Boom. Gold. It could run for years in Showtime or HBO if handled properly (i.e. maintaining the proper balance of comedy and sci-fi/fantasy).
