JMS Offers “Forbidden Planet” Details

When news broke that a remake of the classic movie “Forbidden Planet” was in the works, many of us were a tad concerned.

That concern dissipated a bit when we heard the remake was in the hands of award-winning writer J. Michael Straczynski .

Straczynski, who created the well-respected series “Babylon Five,” tells SciFi Wire that he’s been working on a screenplay for the upcoming project and that he even has a few ideas for a sequel.

“We’ve actually decided to show more of the first ship when it first arrived 20 years earlier to sort of counterpoint what’s happening in the present story,” Straczynski said.  “If you’re a fan of the original, as I am, and have always been, I think it’s very faithful to that.”

There’s a little more action, but it’s still a strong character piece, because it’s based on The Tempest and the idea of a father whose daughter is being courted by, in the original play, sailors that are washed up on shore,” Straczynski said. “You need to have that dynamic still in place to respect the original and the source material. So there’s a fair amount of talking, but there’s some really cool action pieces in it as well.”

It is possible Warner has eyes for more Forbidden Planet adventures beyond one remake, said Straczynski. “Warners is very excited about it, thinks it’s a big franchise for them and a huge budget, so they’re very much oriented toward getting it done.”