More and more networks have been experimenting with adapting movies and crafting sequels for the small screen. Some of those adaptations are big hits with viewers while others are decidedly not. Syfy is looking to get into the game with bringing the big screen to TV with a brand new project based on the 1990 film Tremors. The prospective show (first teased back in 2015) will serve as a sequel to the original movie and even bring back star Kevin Bacon.
While we may be a ways off from Tremors getting a series order a Syfy, the network has officially ordered a pilot. Kevin Bacon will reprise his role as Valentine McKee, who made a name for himself as the man who defeated the monstrous Graboids when they first emerged from underground to menace the citizens of Perfection, Nevada. Val's set of skills will be needed once more, a quarter of a century after the first Graboid assault. Unfortunately, he's not quite in the same condition he was 25 years previously. If he wants to defeat the Graboids, he'll need to overcome the effects of alcoholism, age, and a hero complex that borders on delusional.
Kevin Bacon is on board Tremors as an executive producer. He'll be joined by Andrew Miller of The Scret Circle, who also wrote the pilot and will serve as showrunner. Interestingly, this will not be the first time that Syfy develops a Tremors TV project. Back in 2003 when Syfy was still the Sci-Fi Channel, we had Tremors: The Series as a spinoff of the film franchise. It lasted for only one season of 13 episodes before being cancelled. Given that Kevin Bacon himself is back on board for this new series, I can see it lasting a while longer.
Aside from the 2003 show, the Tremors franchise is comprised of five movies, the last of which was released in 2015. Only the original Tremors was actually released in theaters, however, as the other four were released direct-to-video. Kevin Bacon only appeared in the first movie back in 1990, so a Syfy series would be a big return to the Tremors universe for him.
The Tremors pilot is the latest hint that Syfy is branching out and trying some new (and quite high-profile) projects. The network recently gave a pilot order for a series based on George R.R. Martin's novella Nightflyers, ordered the series all about Superman's family, and has made progress on a series in the Purge franchise. Sure, the channel is also still churning out annual Sharknado movies, but it seems to be experimenting. These new projects all have big names and/or big franchises attached, and they could boost Syfy's standings on the cable landscape if they prove to be successful.
We'll have to wait and see if Tremors makes it past the pilot stage. Our 2017 Netflix premiere guide and our summer TV schedule can point you toward projects that are already available.
