J.J. Abrams has bounced between the world of film and television throughout his career, but as a writer and director, he's been primarily a Star Wars film guy. That's set to change, as Abrams is set to jump back into creating TV shows for the first time since Fringe left the air. Now armed with a presently untitled sci-fi project, Abrams is shopping his new show around in hopes of once again wowing audiences on a weekly basis with his latest work.
The plot of the untitled sci-fi project reportedly begins dramatically enough, with a family involved in a horrific car crash that leaves the mother, a brilliant scientist, in a coma. Her life's work goes untouched until her curious daughter decides to poke around the various experiments and results, and all that digging leads to something crazy, sucking the daughter into a world at war against an oppressive force. The girl won't go at it alone, fortunately, as her father follows her into this strange new world in an adventure that sounds as though it could be J.J. Abrams' take on A Wrinkle In Time.
Abrams has already penned a script for the project and appears to have two big players on the line for the rights to his latest trip into space and whatnot. THR reports both Apple and HBO are interested in the project, although neither confirmed interesting, and it was also said production company Warner Bros. Television is still open to additional bids from other interested parties. Given J.J. Abrams' prestige in Hollywood, it wouldn't be surprising if more names enter the mix, especially when considering this is the director's first original TV series he's written and created since Fringe ended in 2013.
It was not as uncommon for J.J. Abrams to have a hands-on presence in show development prior to Fringe's 2013 finale, as television audiences will definitely remember his work as a co-creator of Lost and as a co-creator and writer Undercovers, Alias, and Felicity. This new project will be a return to Abrams' more hands-on work with a TV project, as opposed to what control he has as an executive producer in his upcoming television projects like Castle Rock and Glare.
J.J. Abrams might be jumping back into TV with a new project, but he's still got some things in the film world he has to attend to. The biggest one, of course, is Star Wars: Episode IX, which is bound to take up a bulk of his time that isn't currently allocated to selling this new project. Abrams also has producer ties to a seemingly endless list of upcoming films and shows, so it's incredibly surprising he's ready to jump into yet another project as a creator, given how loaded his day-to-day schedule must be. Did someone clone this guy? Is there some secret Abrams learned while working on Fringe that's allowing him to pull this demanding schedule off?
J.J. Abrams' new sci-fi TV project doesn't have a title or a network yet, so we'll just have to wait for updates on this story as they come. For a look at upcoming television shows set to premiere in early 2018, visit our midseason premiere guide.
