After Battlestar Galactica ended its epic run in 2009, series creator Ron Moore has had a little trouble getting new shows to resonate with audiences. Granted, Caprica did earn one season on Syfy, but his newest idea, the cop drama 17th Precinct--which would have featured BSG alums Tricia Helfer, James Callis and Jamie Bamber--never made it past the pilot phase. Despite neither show earning six seasons and a movie, Moore has shown an unwillingness to give up, and hopefully his newest project will make its way to series.
Sony Pictures TV has just nabbed the book rights to Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, which features a young woman time traveling from 1945 to 1743. Along with the time travel component, the woman, Claire, also finds herself in a love triangle spanning over each time frame. With the series selling over 20 million copies, an eighth book on the way, and fan tours running in Scotland, the book series is prime real estate and Sony has grabbed some good people to pitch a potential show to the networks, although they may think about changing the name so as not to confuse people with Jim Caviezel’s performance in the 2008 film Outlander, which often gets reruns on cable.
According to Deadline, Ron Moore is being hired to adapt the series to the small screen. Additionally, Jim Kohlberg’s Story Mining and Supply Co. are set to produce the project.
I think most of us love a good time travel story, and adding a romance component could gear the Outlander series to a female-skewed audience that may normally avoid a science fiction premise. Hopefully for Moore, this endeavor will prove a winner for the small screen.
