SCI FI PI

Recent global TV presales in Hollywood have confirmed that the future for Science Fiction on the small screen is rosy. With limited resources due to the recent Writer's Strike, the major studios have still managed to peak the interest of international buyers, and production is going ahead on a vast array of Sci Fi pilots and series. Here are just some.

Joss Whedon (Buffy, Firefly) has had great response to his Dollhouse, which Fox has seen fit not to invest in a pilot, but go straight to series. The first 13 episodes have been scheduled. Production has already begun, starring Buffy's Eliza Dushku, BSG's Tahmoh Pennikett and Angel's Amy Acker in a recurring role.

The Dollhouse concept is pretty far out - a secret base where people are reprogrammed to perform any mission - after five years, their memories are wiped and they receive cash. In the maantime, they can be programmed and reprogrammed to be anything or anyone, in between missions, they return to a childlike state. Of course, Echo (Dushku) begins to attain self awareness. The uber secret organisation of the Dollhouse is being tracked by a dogged FBI man, who of course is ridiculed for his belief in an urban myth.

JJ Abrams' is also garnering attention with his new TV series, Fringe, which required a two hour pilot. Starring Joshua Jackson, it's been described as The X-Files reborn.Aussie Anna Torv is also cast. There is said to be a hint of The Twilight Zone to the new series, with a dash of Altered States. Budget for the pilot? $10 million.

Battlestar Galactica's Ron Moore has also been busy, working on the pilot of Virtual Reality, which looks to have Peter Berg on board as the pilot's director. Hopefully will see slightly better results after learning from Harsh Realm. The stand-alone BSG offshoot Caprica mini-series is already in production.

Jerry Bruckheimer is remaking the Patrick Stewart starrer 11th Hour, and Zak Penn is behind a pilot called Section 8, about a team of investigators with mental abnormalities.

On the big screen, Christian Bale will 'be back' in the shoes of Ahnauld, heading the way for a proposed trilogy of new Terminator movies, which will develop the story even further. The same thing is also happening to Highlander, which will see a big screen rebirth, with a reworking of the original story to combine more of the origin story into the first film.

So all in all, the future of Sci Fi looks busy indeed. And that's not to mention the upcoming Clone Wars animation and live action series from Lucasfilm, obviously, the rebirth of Star Trek, Transformers 2, and the slew of new Marvel films.

It's good to be a geek.