One of the most iconic figures in all of science fiction is most definitely James Cameron. Not only have countless amounts of people have been inspired by his films like ‘The Terminator’ and ‘Aliens’, but because of him we have the various technological advancements that he had a hand in creating to bring the ‘Avatar’ franchise to life on the big screen (and in real life at Walt Disney World). And now because of his enthusiasm and various contributions to the genre, AMC has reached out to the filmmaker to collaborate on a brand new documentary series chronicling the evolution of sci-fi over the years.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the network announced the show tentatively titled ‘James Cameron’s Story of Science Fiction’ during their recent Television Critics Association event. Over the course of the six hour-long episodes set to debut in 2018, this collaboration will see Cameron and his contemporaries “introduce one of the ‘big questions’ that humankind has contemplated throughout the ages and reach back into sci-fi’s past to better understand how our favorite films, TV shows, books and video games were born and where the genre — and our species — might be going in the future.”
On the specific topics that the show will explore, Cameron discussed the elements that really drew him to science fiction and the various people that examined them aside from himself:
“When I was a kid, I basically read any book with a spaceship on the cover and I saw ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ many, many times. The movie inspired me to become a filmmaker. I liked the special effects, but I really loved the ideas and the questions behind them: How will the world end? Will technology destroy us? What does it mean to be human?
These are subjects sci-fi has never been afraid to tackle. With this series, we are going back to the origins of sci-fi, following the DNA of these ideas back to the source. Without Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, there wouldn’t have been Ray Bradbury or Robert A. Heinlein, and without them, there wouldn’t be [George] Lucas, [Steven] Spielberg, Ridley Scott or me. As a filmmaker who specializes in science fiction, I’m interested in exploring the struggles and the triumphs that brought these incredible stories to life and seeing how art imitates life, as well as how science fiction imitates and sometimes informs science.”
With shows like ‘The Walking Dead’ and ‘Comic Book Men’ already excelling on the network, it seems like ‘Story of Science Fiction’ will fit right in on AMC, who have been appealing to the Comic-Con audience more and more as the years go by. But are you interested in their latest venture? Will you be tuning in next year to see the evolution of science fiction from James Cameron’s point of view? Let us know in the comments.
Despite being a “professional writer”, Ben likes run-on sentences far too much. For more of his attempts at being funny and the occasional insightful thought, follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
