It’s time for one of the most beloved sci-fi classics of the ‘90s to come back — and the man behind it the first time round is back for more.
Variety reports that Warner Bros. has ordered a reboot of Bablyon 5, produced and written by Straczynski as part of a deal between Warner Bros. TV and Straczynski’s Studio JMS. The series is not a continuation of the show, but a “from the ground up” reboot of the cult classic 1993 series, which ran across five seasons and seven made-for-TV movies until 1998.
Set in a future where humanity has gone into the stars and found a plethora of alien civilisations to attempt to live in harmony, Babylon 5 followed Earthforce officer John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) as he took command of the titular space station Babylon 5, a hub for diplomatic meetings, trade negotiations, and eventually a staging ground among renewed conflicts between the civilizations of the world and even humanity’s own decent into totalitarianism.
The series was beloved for its dark sci-fi plots and its approach to a massive, intertwined narrative over the course of its seasons and movies — and spinoffs like the TNT series Crusade — to tell a long form story, rather than plots-of-the-week with iconic alien characters like Mira Furlan’s Delenn and Andreas Katsulas’ petty villain turned spiritual figure G’Kar. Although the series came to an end in 1998, it inspired a whole universe of tie-in novels, and its influence can be felt everywhere from the likes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine to Straczynski’s own work collaborating with the Wachowskis on Sense8.
We’ll bring you more on The CW’s plans for Babylon 5 as and when we learn them.