You know, just yesterday I was wondering to myself where Ron Moore — the brilliant storyteller behind Syfy’s modern reimagining of Battlestar Galactica — was going to turn up next. Sure, he’s got Caprica, the prequel to BSG, going strong, but the day-to-day work on that show is being handled by others. And last year, he developed a new pilot for Fox called Virtuality, but it was so high concept that it got canceled before it ever aired. The two-hour pilot was all that was filmed, and Fox aired it as a movie-of-the-week.
So it’s with some excitement that I bring you the news that Moore has signed an exclusive development deal with Sony Television, and that NBC has snatched up his first idea, which is described as a story “set in a world ruled not by science but by magic.” The shorthand going around Hollywood is that it’s an “adult version of Harry Potter,” though knowing Moore, I’m sure there’s way more to it than that. (After all, the same could be said about The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, and the reception that movie got would hardly be the kind of thing NBC would be eager to sign on for.)
Even bigger news is that NBC has shelled out something close to $2 million in a pay-or-play development deal for the series.
As much as I enjoyed Virtuality, it would probably be a smart move for Moore to do something a little more audience-friendly and accessible. Here’s hoping big things will come of this!
NBC has been snatching up genre-friendly shows left and right lately. This season alone they’re debuting The Event, Undercovers, and The Cape, alongside the 4th season of fan-favorite Chuck.