galaxy quest

Yes, reboots and rehashes are a dime a dozen right now in Hollywood, but every so often a property is given the chance to come back to life that just… feels different.  For many fans and admirers of the quirky and brilliant 1999 sci-fi send-up film ‘Galaxy Quest,’ excitement was at an all-time high when Amazon announced that they were planning a TV adaptation of the film.

Writer/actor Paul Scheer, best known for his work with the MTV skit-comedy group ‘Human Giant’ and his on-screen turn as the nerdy Andre on FX’s ‘The League,’ was given the job to write the overview for the new ‘Galaxy Quest’ series.  In a recent interview, Scheer elaborated on his recently-submitted proposal to Amazon:

“Right now, I just handed in my first script to Amazon, so I’m in that zone. I’m excited about it. It’s a bigger idea that’s kind of morphed and changed a little bit. Not much. The thing I keep on saying about it, without giving too much away – because it’s going to be so long before people get to see it, I don’t want people to get too burnt out on me telling you what it’s about before it gets to that point – but for me, it was really important to do service to a ‘Galaxy Quest’ story that gives you everything that you want and indoctrinates people who have never seen Galaxy Quest into what the fun of that world is. That ‘Tropic Thunder,’ ‘Galaxy Quest’ world. And also to continue the story of our original characters and have consequences from the first film.

 

“So it is mixing two casts. It’s separate kind of adventures that kind of merge, and I’m looking at this first season not as episodic, but as a serialized story. So, the only way I’ve been looking at it is, using everything from the first movie and making the reasons for everything not just – I want to avoid anything that could be viewed as a reboot for reboot’s sake. There are real reasons behind these choices – maybe too much so.”

Scheer clearly seems to understand the rationale for producing a show based on the beloved film as an intelligent way to continue and evolve the ‘Galaxy Quest’ story, and not just a cash-grab type of idea.

Scheer also understands that there has been a pop-culture shift since the original film was released:

“I love that in 1999, as a fan of ‘Star Trek’ and going to these conventions since I was a kid: sci-fi, fantasy, those worlds have changed so drastically. I really wanted to capture the difference between the original cast of ‘Star Trek’ and the J.J. Abrams cast of ‘Star Trek.’ I think that, to me, is my entry point. Sci-fi heroes are rock stars now. If you look at Thor: in 1999 if that movie came out, it would not be received the way it is. People would not want to see a cosmic, galactic thing on that level. But now we’re accepting it. I think just by virtue of that switch in our environment, it’ll make the story feel a little bit more fresh.”

It certainly sounds like he has a firm grasp on wanting to meld a “nerd-chic” type of vibe with the more original genre hard-core-ness, and that’s an idea that could vibe well by showing a younger cast on a new ‘Galaxy Quest’ TV series.  No official word yet if any of the surviving film cast will might be back, either in cameo or ongoing form – I’ll hold out hope for an appearance from any of Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Sam Rockwell, Justin Long, Tony Shaloub, or Daryl Mitchell (RIP Alan Rickman).