Life on Mars is Officially Approved by ABC
It is official! Stephanie Chaves-Jacobsen’s new show, the David E. Kelly remake of the BBC drama Life on Mars, has been picked up by ABC. While industry experts considered this to be a predictable move, fans of Stephanie’s performance as Kendra Shaw in Razor were still relieved to have ABC confirm the commitment at yesterday’s Upfronts in New York City.
Life on Mars was a huge critical hit on the BBC, and the remake will continue the original’s combination of elements of scifi time-travel theories with classic police procedural plot points. The premise is that an car accident causes a police detective to go back in time to the 1970s, but audience is never sure if the guy has gone into a coma, gone back in time, or gone to a mental institution.
The BBC drama ended without the question being answered to everyone’s satisfaction, but the remake is more likely to emphasize the drama of human relationships than the drama of time travel. David E. Kelly is not known for his scifi/fantasy roots, and the primary executive producers are reportedly from October Road. While I was one of the few viewers who loved October Road, primarily because the great lighting and fascinating supporting cast made up for the fact that the leads were as charismatic as manufactured sponges, I am not too confident in their ability to manage an intricate scifi serial.
For the sake of Stephanie and all of the scifi fans out there who are already rooting for this to succeed, I hope I am wrong. Life on Mars has a lot of potential … it would be great of the show lived up to its promise.
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