HDFilms, the company that produced the rebooted V science fiction series for ABC, is going back even further in time to create a new version of Space: 1999, the Gerry and Sylvia Anderson-created series that originally aired from 1975-1977.  Producer Jace Hall, whose company is producing the new Space: 2099 series, indicates that what drew him to the project was the “near-future plausibility” of the original series, which drew heavily on the “hard” science fiction of films like Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey.

 

Of course the original series had its implausible elements.  A nuclear waste explosion that sent the inhabitants of the moonbase hurtling through space at speeds that would make life for those on the base impossible would have had far more effect on both the Earth and the Moon—and the idea that the wandering moon would come into contact with an different alien group or interstellar crisis with anything like the weekly frequency of the series is clearly absurd, but in comparison with most TV space operas Space:1999 was a model of scientific plausibility.

 

Hall explained his approached in an interview with io9: “Space: 1999 presented a very near future societal depiction where a moonbase had been established, and the show worked to successfully convince us that it was a reasonable vision to have given where the world was in the 70s.  In a similar but much more emphasized vein, one of the key elements in our depiction will be as much plausibility as possible.  Since we are dealing with a future timeframe of only around 80 years, there will still be plenty of familiar things around – however evolved they happen to be. It is this kind of projected iteration and future evolution that can be fun to depict as well as very thought-provoking.  We consciously understand that a future projection must be comprehensive and not just focus on technology.  Corporations, governments, social issues and day to day concerns all must be considered.”