Sci-Fi Storm

Syfy today announced Z Nation, a 13-episode zombie series set to debut in the fall from production company The Asylum (the studio that brought us Sharknado). The action-horror series depicts the epic struggle to save humanity after a zombie apocalypse. The series, which will air on Syfy, will be produced by The Asylum and sold internationally by Dynamic Television.

Karl Schaefer (Eerie Indiana, Eureka, The Dead Zone) will serve as executive producer and showrunner. “Z Nation will take viewers where no zombie has gone before,” says Schaefer. The show, he continues, adds “a sense of hope to the horror of the apocalypse – our everyday heroes take the fight to the zombies. It’ll be an epic journey unlike anything you’ve seen before.”

In making the announcement, Chris Regina, Senior Vice President, Programming, Syfy, said: “Z Nation is a unique new journey into the long established zombie genre. Instead of existential despair, the series offers hope that somehow, some way, humanity will not only survive, but triumph. In producing their first ever weekly series, our long-time partners The Asylum have created a different way of telling an iconic story.”

In Z Nation, three years have passed since the zombie virus has gutted the country, and a team of everyday heroes must transport the only known survivor of the plague from New York to California, where the last functioning viral lab waits for his blood. Although the antibodies he carries are the world’s last, best hope for a vaccine, he hides a dark secret that threatens them all. With humankind’s survival at stake, the ragtag band embarks on a journey of survival across three thousand miles of rusted-out post-apocalyptic America.

Z Nation is a dynamic ensemble drama that will plunge viewers into a fully-imagined post-zombie America and take them on an adventure with a diverse group of richly-drawn characters. As the reluctant heroes learn to work as a team and battle ever-more-menacing zombies, their flaws, idiosyncrasies, and moral dilemmas will ultimately become the heart of the show.

After the success of “re-imagination” shows like Merlin and Atlantis, it seems Syfy is seeing some benefit in the re-telling of the old stories.

Syfy, Reunion Pictures and Great Point Media today announced a new mythological drama series Olympus, which will take viewers into the action-packed world of humans, Gods and monsters.

The 13-part series of one hour episodes will premiere on Syfy in 2015.

The team behind Olympus includes writer Nick Willing (Tinman, Alice, Neverland) and legendary executive producer Robert Halmi Sr. (Mr. and Mrs. Bridge, The Odyssey, Gulliver’s Travels).

Olympus will tell the story of how a few brave men and women banished the Gods to the realm of the unconscious – a place they called the Underworld or the Kingdom of Hades. The series will follow the protagonist on his journey as he gradually transforms from a fresh-faced and raw young man through the dramatic experiences of betrayal, love, disappointment, empowerment and exile, until he emerges a ruthless leader of men, and a match for the Gods themselves.

The series is being produced by Reunion Pictures and Olympus TV (London) Limited in association with Great Point Media, and will begin production this summer in Vancouver and London, with the first episode written and directed by Willing. Executive Producers are Robert Halmi Sr. for The Halmi Company, Robert Halmi Jr. and Jim Reeve for Great Point Media and Matthew O’Connor and Lisa Richardson for Reunion Pictures. The series is being marketed and distributed by Content Media Group outside the US, Germany and Canada.

“Olympus is a fantastic blend of action, intense thrills, creatures and great story telling. It will feature characters from mythology in a way never before imagined,” said Chris Regina, Senior Vice President, Programming, Syfy. “It’s an excellent complement to our roster of programming and we can’t wait to share the adventures of Hero with the Syfy audience.”

“I’m thrilled that the team of Willing, O’Connor and Halmi are together on another exciting Syfy project. With the success of Tinman, Neverland and Alice, we are confident that this will be another epic adventure for television,” stated Halmi Sr.