Is a Babylon 5 big screen film possible?
I've said many times on this website that Star Trek is my all time favorite franchise and although true, the closest any franchise has ever come to taking over that spot is Babylon 5. Without a doubt Babylon 5 will always be a solid number 2 in my most favorite franchises of all time.
The summer of 07, we Babylon 5 fans received a little gift from Warner Bros. in the form of a DVD called Babylon 5: The Lost Tales. Most of us enjoyed it, however, it wasn't exactly what we had in mind for the return of Babylon 5. In short, we wanted something bigger, something that brought out the scope from J. Michael Straczynski's creation, a universe full of magic in a sense. We didn't get that with The Lost Tales but by no means were we disappointed especially since we were under the impression that more DVD Tales were going to come out, however, JMS had other plans. To make a long story short, The Lost Tales disappointed JMS more than it did us because of the budget and how it made his universe seem smaller. He went on to say at one point that he wasn't going to make anymore Babylon 5 unless big money was put into it - never again was he going to cheat the franchise that so many love with mediocre low-budget story telling. You tell them JMS!! He said at his official site back in July of 08, "If anything else is to be continued from that story, it should be something that adds to the legacy of B5, rather than subtracts from it,"
"...I'm not interested in doing any more low-budget DVDs," he says. "I'm not interested in doing any low-budget cable things or small computer games. The only thing I would be interested in doing regarding Babylon 5 from this point on is a full-featured, big-budget feature film."
Well folks, he may have gotten his wish! Maybe.
Gareth from Skewed & Reviewed received word from JMS that a big budget film is being hinted at by Warner Bros. JMS says, "...WB never seemed interested in doing a big B5 movie just on its own terms, in recognition for what it is and was. But now that I'm suddenly doing all this movie work, they've started calling and saying, 'So, how big a movie would it have to be for you to come back and make a B5 movie for us?' So we'll see." That movie work JMS talks about is Changeling with Angelina Jolie and Forbidden Planet.
I'll wait until JMS confirmes this on his site or at the New York City Comic Con coming up, but I really hope it's true. My biggest fear is that Babylon will fall into the Serenity trap and basically make no money in theaters - Can a Babylon 5 feature film make big money in theaters? Honestly, I doubt it and it's a huge risk for the WB. I could be wrong however. Also, with everything that has just happened with Watchmen and FOX, Babylon 5 could potentially be a really BIG risk for them.
Hopefully we'll hear more soon, and considering I don't give shit about the WB's financial status, I pray that something like this happens. Babylon 5 is something very special and a big screen treatment, with the whole gang back together, is a dream and it could very well be a dream come true.
Read all of JMS comments at Skewed & Reviewed.
-Phil
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jms is usually very up front with his fans, and nothing about this has come down the pike. Of course as a big b5 fan I am really excited about a potential movie, but I’ll wait for something a little more official before I celebrate.
i do hope so
i loved babylon 5 and the story arc. keeping my fingers crossed
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