B5: The Memory of Shadows a Go?
12-08-04, 05:50 PM
#1
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B5: The Memory of Shadows a Go?
Movie Website News
B5`s MEMORY OF SHADOWS emerges from the darkness
Details on secret movie leaked on internet
Source: Production Weekly
We're getting a number of scoops about the story that the Production Weekly website is running today about that rumored BABYLON 5 movie we've all been hearing about. Rumors of a B5 theatrical movie, titled THE MEMORY OF SHADOWS, have been floating about on the web for a year, with series creator J. Michael Straczynski stoking the coals with a cryptic mention of a secret project in the works. It looks like Production Weekly has finally broken the silence on what THE MEMORY OF SHADOWS is about.
According to the website the movie will begin filming come next April in the United Kingdom under the direction of Steven Beck. Straczynski wrote the movie's screenplay and story, and this is how Production Weekly describes it:
"The technology of the ancient and extinct Shadow race is being unleashed upon the galaxy by an unknown force, and Earthforce intelligence officer Diane Baker, whose brother was recently killed in a mysterious explosion, is out to find out who is behind the intergalactic conspiracy. Joining her in her investigation is Galen, a techno-mage who has been charged with keeping the technology out of the hands of those who would abuse it."
Fans of the B5 spinoff series CRUSADE (which just arrived on DVD this week) will remember the character of Galen from that show. In the series the character was played by Peter Woodward, but it's unknown if the part will be recast for the feature film.
Here's the kicker to this story: in October Straczynski made a Usenet posting which said, "...Oh, and for the first time in five years, there is an office somewhere in England with the words Babylon 5 on the door..." That does match up with Production Weekly's report of filming scheduled to take place in England next year.
Got a scoop? Know something that you need to tell us about? Send it to us!
B5`s MEMORY OF SHADOWS emerges from the darkness
Details on secret movie leaked on internet
Source: Production Weekly
We're getting a number of scoops about the story that the Production Weekly website is running today about that rumored BABYLON 5 movie we've all been hearing about. Rumors of a B5 theatrical movie, titled THE MEMORY OF SHADOWS, have been floating about on the web for a year, with series creator J. Michael Straczynski stoking the coals with a cryptic mention of a secret project in the works. It looks like Production Weekly has finally broken the silence on what THE MEMORY OF SHADOWS is about.
According to the website the movie will begin filming come next April in the United Kingdom under the direction of Steven Beck. Straczynski wrote the movie's screenplay and story, and this is how Production Weekly describes it:
"The technology of the ancient and extinct Shadow race is being unleashed upon the galaxy by an unknown force, and Earthforce intelligence officer Diane Baker, whose brother was recently killed in a mysterious explosion, is out to find out who is behind the intergalactic conspiracy. Joining her in her investigation is Galen, a techno-mage who has been charged with keeping the technology out of the hands of those who would abuse it."
Fans of the B5 spinoff series CRUSADE (which just arrived on DVD this week) will remember the character of Galen from that show. In the series the character was played by Peter Woodward, but it's unknown if the part will be recast for the feature film.
Here's the kicker to this story: in October Straczynski made a Usenet posting which said, "...Oh, and for the first time in five years, there is an office somewhere in England with the words Babylon 5 on the door..." That does match up with Production Weekly's report of filming scheduled to take place in England next year.
Got a scoop? Know something that you need to tell us about? Send it to us!
12-09-04, 07:21 AM
#2
DVD Talk Hero
Kind of surprising that the description above makes it appear that this is going to be more of a "Crusade" movie than Babylon 5 proper, what with Galen and the remaining Shadowtech.
I wonder who else (from either show) will be appearing in the movie. Gideon? Sheridan? Delenn? Garibaldi? Londo? G'Kar? (Apparently, Dr. Franklin was going to be a part of the movie, as Richard Biggs' death necessitated rewrites of the script.)
I wonder who else (from either show) will be appearing in the movie. Gideon? Sheridan? Delenn? Garibaldi? Londo? G'Kar? (Apparently, Dr. Franklin was going to be a part of the movie, as Richard Biggs' death necessitated rewrites of the script.)
01-09-05, 02:57 AM
#5
DVD Talk Hero
There's a huge controversy going on in RASTB5MOD about the casting.
There's very little "official" right now, however.
It began on the group as a rumor that WB wanted to recast the movie with more marketable names.
And then there's this from Filmjerk:
So far, the casting sheets have only shown that they're looking for the "leads" to play Galen (who apparently won't be played by Peter Woodward), Diane Baker, and a few other new characters. Which, if they're going to have a number of the original characters being played by the original actors, would make sense to have a casting sheet for Sheridan or Delenn.
So it sort of comes down to a question of what is being planned. Will it be a movie of mostly new characters set in the Babylon 5 universe? Or will it be a mix of new and old characters? Did WB want all of the old characters recast, so JMS wrote the old characters out and replaced them with new characters? Was this the plan all along?
So far, this is all JMS has had to say on the subject:
There's very little "official" right now, however.
It began on the group as a rumor that WB wanted to recast the movie with more marketable names.
And then there's this from Filmjerk:
The last I'd heard is that JMS (the shows creator, J.Michael Straczynski) had put the project on hold after Richard Bigg's death. Biggs played Dr. Franklin, and died in May of 2004. Memory of Shadows is back on track now, and will begin filming in England next April with director Steven Beck.
The story follows Diane Baker, an Earthforce Intelligence Officer whose brother is killed in an explosion. She teams up with Techno-Mage Galen, previously played by Peter Woodward but whose part is being re-cast, to find the truth behind her brother's death. They discover that dark forces are unleashing ancient Shadow technology--technology that was supposed to be guarded by Galen--and the two uncover a huge conspiracy.
So far, the only original character participating is Elizabeth Lochley, played by Tracey Scoggins. She is still the commander of Babylon 5. She is friends with Diane. Part of the action takes place on B5, as the station is taken over by Earthforce Marines, including new lead character Colonel Joss Morgan.
Galen will battle childhood friend and Techno-Mage, Tyrell. Tyrell is sort of a mercenary, with an agenda of his own. Are you seeing Gandolf fighting Saruman in your head right now? You know you are. I can only imagine we'll see more original cast members on the station. Believe me, I'll keep you all posted. Damn, it's good to be back!
The story follows Diane Baker, an Earthforce Intelligence Officer whose brother is killed in an explosion. She teams up with Techno-Mage Galen, previously played by Peter Woodward but whose part is being re-cast, to find the truth behind her brother's death. They discover that dark forces are unleashing ancient Shadow technology--technology that was supposed to be guarded by Galen--and the two uncover a huge conspiracy.
So far, the only original character participating is Elizabeth Lochley, played by Tracey Scoggins. She is still the commander of Babylon 5. She is friends with Diane. Part of the action takes place on B5, as the station is taken over by Earthforce Marines, including new lead character Colonel Joss Morgan.
Galen will battle childhood friend and Techno-Mage, Tyrell. Tyrell is sort of a mercenary, with an agenda of his own. Are you seeing Gandolf fighting Saruman in your head right now? You know you are. I can only imagine we'll see more original cast members on the station. Believe me, I'll keep you all posted. Damn, it's good to be back!
So it sort of comes down to a question of what is being planned. Will it be a movie of mostly new characters set in the Babylon 5 universe? Or will it be a mix of new and old characters? Did WB want all of the old characters recast, so JMS wrote the old characters out and replaced them with new characters? Was this the plan all along?
So far, this is all JMS has had to say on the subject:
I would like to be able to comment on this, but for the time being I am not able to do so.
02-24-05, 09:26 PM
#6
DVD Talk Hero
Looks like the movie might be in trouble:
from RASTB5MOD:
Which is followed by this reply:
No news from JMS himself yet.
from RASTB5MOD:
On January 30, in an email titled
"Quickie from JMS" you posted this concerning TMoS:
"I'd say that the next two weeks are going to be critical for the future of
TMoS. There have been a variety of conversations about a variety of things and people, and some offers are starting to go out to various individuals...so we shall see what we shall see."
We out in the hinterlands haven't seen or heard anything, even though 3 weeks have passed. Can you say if things go well or not?
"Quickie from JMS" you posted this concerning TMoS:
"I'd say that the next two weeks are going to be critical for the future of
TMoS. There have been a variety of conversations about a variety of things and people, and some offers are starting to go out to various individuals...so we shall see what we shall see."
We out in the hinterlands haven't seen or heard anything, even though 3 weeks have passed. Can you say if things go well or not?
To quote Mira Furlan at VisionCon in Missouri this past weekend, "It's
dead".
dead".
02-25-05, 08:59 PM
#7
DVD Talk Hero
B5: THe Memory of Shadows? Dead as a fucking doornail, Jim.
From JMS:
From JMS:
The rule of thumb in Hollywood is that for every thousand scripts that
get written, only a few dozen get into development, and out of those,
only one will ever get made...if that.
A little over a year ago, I was approached by a company that wanted to
make a Babylon 5 movie. They optioned the rights, and commissioned a
script. (It's worth mentioning that I, not WB, own the rights to a B5
movie. When we were negotiating the original B5 deal -- by whose terms
I will never see a dime in profit -- the one thing they did let me have
were the movie rights, figuring they'd never be worth anything in the
long run.)
Anyway...on December 27th of 2003, the script for "The Memory of
Shadows" was turned in, and the process began of trying to make the
deal work with all the various forces involved. It is, to say the
least, a very difficult process on any movie where the studio does not
directly take the financial reins. In terms of B5, Warner's position
was esssentially, "We only do big-budget movies with big names, so
you're on your own." If there were big-name movie actors in the film,
they'd get behind it; without that, things become very problematic,
especially as far as the financing was concerned. You much have to put
together a consortium of international interests and business plans
rivaled in complexity only by the Allied invasion of Normandy Beach.
Nonetheless, every attempt was made by the people involved to get this
deal in place. This was not being done by Doug or myself, but rather
by the company/individuals who approached us and optioned the rights.
At times, it seemed we were inches away from a deal...stages were
reserved at Elstree, actors were contacted, a director was in place,
the script went through many revisions, a few key staff were hired,
again not by me...it was really a year-long roller coaster ride.
During that time, the people involved, with every good intention, tried
very hard to pull the necessary pieces together on the deal. The
option expired in late December 2004, but I renewed it without cost, to
give those involved more time to try and make things work.
In the end, however, the deal could be put together, and it did not
look as if that was going to change at any point in the foreseeable
future. So the option has reverted, and to all intents and purposes,
the project has dead ended. Nor do I think this particular incarnation
will arise again at any point in the future, though prognostication has
always been a tricky art, especially if you have to do it without the
benefit of hindsight.
This was not the first time someone's taken a run at a B5 feature film,
and it will not be the last. Eventually it will happen, because such
things are simply inevitable. If they can do a Brady Bunch movie, you
can be sure that sooner or later, somebody's going to do a B5 movie.
The only thing I can say without equivocation is that when that day
comes, as the rights-holder, I will make darned sure that it's done
right, because I'd rather have no B5 movie than one that doesn't live
up to what fans and I myself would want to see.
To that end...I can wait.
Anyway, just thought you should know the story.
jms
get written, only a few dozen get into development, and out of those,
only one will ever get made...if that.
A little over a year ago, I was approached by a company that wanted to
make a Babylon 5 movie. They optioned the rights, and commissioned a
script. (It's worth mentioning that I, not WB, own the rights to a B5
movie. When we were negotiating the original B5 deal -- by whose terms
I will never see a dime in profit -- the one thing they did let me have
were the movie rights, figuring they'd never be worth anything in the
long run.)
Anyway...on December 27th of 2003, the script for "The Memory of
Shadows" was turned in, and the process began of trying to make the
deal work with all the various forces involved. It is, to say the
least, a very difficult process on any movie where the studio does not
directly take the financial reins. In terms of B5, Warner's position
was esssentially, "We only do big-budget movies with big names, so
you're on your own." If there were big-name movie actors in the film,
they'd get behind it; without that, things become very problematic,
especially as far as the financing was concerned. You much have to put
together a consortium of international interests and business plans
rivaled in complexity only by the Allied invasion of Normandy Beach.
Nonetheless, every attempt was made by the people involved to get this
deal in place. This was not being done by Doug or myself, but rather
by the company/individuals who approached us and optioned the rights.
At times, it seemed we were inches away from a deal...stages were
reserved at Elstree, actors were contacted, a director was in place,
the script went through many revisions, a few key staff were hired,
again not by me...it was really a year-long roller coaster ride.
During that time, the people involved, with every good intention, tried
very hard to pull the necessary pieces together on the deal. The
option expired in late December 2004, but I renewed it without cost, to
give those involved more time to try and make things work.
In the end, however, the deal could be put together, and it did not
look as if that was going to change at any point in the foreseeable
future. So the option has reverted, and to all intents and purposes,
the project has dead ended. Nor do I think this particular incarnation
will arise again at any point in the future, though prognostication has
always been a tricky art, especially if you have to do it without the
benefit of hindsight.
This was not the first time someone's taken a run at a B5 feature film,
and it will not be the last. Eventually it will happen, because such
things are simply inevitable. If they can do a Brady Bunch movie, you
can be sure that sooner or later, somebody's going to do a B5 movie.
The only thing I can say without equivocation is that when that day
comes, as the rights-holder, I will make darned sure that it's done
right, because I'd rather have no B5 movie than one that doesn't live
up to what fans and I myself would want to see.
To that end...I can wait.
Anyway, just thought you should know the story.
jms
02-26-05, 10:24 PM
#10
DVD Talk Hero
Crap. This had potential. Oh well... Time to scrounge up the cash for those B5 and Crusade boxsets to get my fix.
Last edited by RocShemp; 03-01-05 at 10:09 AM.
02-28-05, 12:48 PM
#11
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Bummer! I really wanted to see this happen. Serenity can get a movie made after one season but people in Hollywood cant put up some money without big name stars for B5? Unbelieveable.
