Sci-Fi Storm

Syfy and Alcon TV today announced that three-time Golden Globe nominee Thomas Jane (Hung, The Punisher) will star as the world-weary Detective Miller, a native of “the Asteroid Belt” between Mars and Jupiter, in The Expanse, the new 10-episode space opera based on the international best-selling book series, premiering on Syfy in 2015.

Miller portrays a detective for a corporate security force operating as the law in The Belt. Ragged, in search of something even he can’t identify, Miller remains a dedicated cop with great instincts who discovers a new found sense of purpose when he’s put in charge of the investigation into a missing heiress.

Jane received three Golden Globe nominations for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy for Hung. Jane is the lead of three studio movies being released this year: The Veil for Universal Pictures and Blumhouse, Somnia for Relativity Media, and Vice for Lionsgate and Emmett/Furla/Oasis. He also stars in the History mini-series Texas Rising, which is currently in production

Jane’s other notable roles include The Mist, Dream Catcher, Deep Blue Sea, Thin Red Line, Face/Off, 61* and Boogie Nights.

Jane is represented by Paradigm and Jamie Afifi at Ziffren Brittenham.

The Expanse is a thriller set two hundred years in the future. The series follows the case of a missing young woman who brings a hardened detective (Jane) and a rogue ship’s captain together in a race across the solar system to expose the greatest conspiracy in human history.

In making the announcement, Bill McGoldrick, Executive Vice President, Original Content, Syfy, said: “Thomas Jane is exactly the type of high caliber actor we hoped this project would attract. The intelligence and nuance he brings to every performance is perfect for the role of Miller.”

Said Sharon Hall, President, Alcon Television: “We knew this material would attract highly skilled actors and could not be happier about having Thomas Jane on board.”

The Academy Award-nominated screenwriting duo Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby (Alfonso Cuaron’s Children of Men, Iron Man) wrote the pilot and will continue to serve as writers as well as executive producers. Fergus and Ostby are showrunners alongside fellow executive producer Naren Shankar (CSI, Farscape)

The Expanse is produced by Alcon Television Group (ATG), a division of Alcon Entertainment, and marks the company’s first series order.

Alcon co-founders and co-CEO’s Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson will serve as executive producers with Hall. Alcon Television executive Ben Roberts will serve as co-producer. Ben Cook will serve as producer. Sean Daniel (Graceland, The Mummy) and Jason Brown of the Sean Daniel Company developed the original pitch, with Fergus and Ostby, and will also executive produce.

Developed with the Sean Daniel Company as a direct-to-series project, Alcon is financing and executive producing the hour-long, 10 episode series, based on the popular New York Times bestselling book series collectively known as The Expanse, written by Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck (under the pen name James S. A. Corey). Abraham and Franck will be show producers.

The multi-installment, best-selling book series is published in 17 countries, including China, France, Japan, Australia, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom. Book one in the series, “Leviathan Wakes,” was nominated for a Hugo Award as well as a Locus Award, while the second novel, “Caliban’s War” was nominated for a Locus Award.

Syfy today unveiled the cast of Z Nation, an all-new zombie series set to debut in the fall. From production company The Asylum (Sharknado), the 13-episode action-horror series depicts the epic struggle to save humanity after a zombie apocalypse. Harold Perrineau (Oz, Lost) Tom Everett Scott (Southland, Beauty and the Beast), DJ Qualls (Supernatural), Michael Welch (Twilight trilogy) and Kellita Smith (The Bernie Mac Show) have joined the ensemble drama, currently in production in Spokane, WA.

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.

Perrineau will play Hammond, the leader of the group headed west; Scott portrays Garnett, Hammond’s second-in-command; and Qualls plays the role of Citizen Z, a computer hacker who joins the team and helps them navigate the zombie-infested terrain. Welch and Smith are Mack and Addy, respectively, two disparate wanderers drawn to the team – and to each other – by a shared goal: survival.

Rounding out the ensemble are Anastasia Baranova (The Darkness II) as Addy, Russell Hodgkinson (Big Fish) as Doc and Keith Allan (Rise of the Zombies) as Murphy.

Z Nation is a dynamic ensemble action-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.

Karl Schaefer (Eerie Indiana, Eureka, The Dead Zone) serves as executive producer and showrunner. Acclaimed action director John Hyams (Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning) will direct the pilot. The series is produced by The Asylum and sold internationally by Dynamic Television.

Heads up! The Wil Wheaton Project and Heroes of Cosplay are swapping time slots starting next week…The Wil Wheaton Project will air at 9/8c on Tuesdays, and Heroes of Cosplay will air at 10/9c.

Syfy today announced that Brian Van Holt (Cougar Town, The Bridge) will star in the channel’s new original, six hour event series Ascension, portraying eponymous ship’s captain, William Denninger. Van Holt joins the previously announced Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica) in the intergalactic mystery series; the two will play husband and wife.

A politician as well as a military man, Denninger is a natural leader. Rising through the ship’s ranks, he became captain of the Ascension as a result of his heroic actions during a catastrophic fire that nearly destroyed the ship early in its voyage. While strong-willed and confident, he and his wife, Viondra (Helfer), have a very public yet tortured marriage.

In 1963, the U.S. government launched a covert space mission sending hundreds of men, women and children on a century-long voyage aboard the starship Ascension to populate a new world. Nearly 50 years into the journey, as they approach the point of no return, the mysterious murder of a young woman causes the ship’s population to question the true nature of their mission.

Brian Van Holt will appear opposite Reese Witherspoon in Jean-Marc Vallee’s upcoming feature film Wild for Fox Searchlight. His other film credits include Black Hawk Down directed by Ridley Scott, Confidence directed by James Foley, Swat directed by Clark Johnson, House of Wax directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, and Bullet to the Head directed by Walter Hill.

On television, he appears in a recurring role as “Ray Burton” in FX’s hit series The Bridge starring Demian Bichir and Diane Kruger. He also starred in the TBS/ABC comedy Cougar Town, and previously starred in David Milch’s HBO series John from Cincinatti. He is repped by APA (agency) and Circle of Confusion (management).

Ascension is an ambitious original drama created and written by Philip Levens (Smallville) who will serve as Executive Producer and Showrunner. The series will be produced in Montreal, QC by Lionsgate Television and Sea To Sky Studios in association with Blumhouse Productions. Jason Blum (Stranded, The River, film franchises Paranormal Activity and The Purge) and Mark Stern are Executive Producers on the project along with Ivan Fecan, Tim Gamble and Brett Burlock on behalf of Sea To Sky Studios. The event series will be co-financed and distributed by Universal Cable Productions and Lionsgate Television.

Ascension is slated to launch in November 2014 and air through December.

Syfy announced that it will acquire the second season of Canadian import werewolf series Bitten from Entertainment One, which will premiere in 2015 with 10 new episodes.

The show, based on the Women Of The Otherworld series of novels from Kelley Armstrong, stars Laura Vandervoort (Smallville), a lone female werewolf trying to live a normal life when she’s recalled to her pack to help against an unknown enemy.

A triple of Syfy stuff for you tonight!

First, if you need to catch up of Defiance, or just want to watch it again, Syfy is running a marathon of the entire first season starting at 8am ET/7am PT on Monday, May 26th…and be prepared for the second season starting June 19th at 9/8c!

Next, Defiance will be followed new series Dominion, based on the movie Legion – and here is the upfront trailer:

Lastly, Syfy has announced that it has acquired all 39 episodes of Starz’ series Spartacus – three seasons plus a six episode mini-series, and will follow Defiance and Dominion on it’s new Thursday night lineup.

Spartacus will make its basic cable premiere on Thursday, June 26 at 10PM (ET/PT), rounding out the channel’s potent primetime lineup of original series Defiance at 8PM and Dominion at 9PM.
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Syfy’s The Wil Wheaton Project starts in just one week – Tuesday May 27th at 10/9c. What is it you ask? Well, here’s the official description:

The Wil Wheaton Project, a weekly topical comedy show hosted by actor, blogger and champion of geek culture Wil Wheaton, is coming to Syfy on Tuesday, May 27th at 10/9c. The 30-minute show will offer a fast-paced, lighthearted exploration and celebration of all things within the realm of science fiction and genre entertainment. Each week, Wil provides his insider point-of-view, sense of humor and genre expertise as he dissects the week’s most popular and trending topics across science fiction film, television and pop culture, video games, viral videos and news. Wil is on his feet for the rapid-fire half hour, delivering witty commentary on the things he knows and loves in this golden age of sci-pop culture. The result is a fun appreciation and celebration of fandom and all things science fiction.

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Ascension debuts in November, and is produced by Sea To Sky Studios in association with Blumhouse Productions. From written/executive producer Philip Levens; Ivan Fecan, Tim Gamble and Brett Burlock also exec produce.

Dominion premieres on Syfy June 19th, produced by Universal Cable Productions and Bold Films. From executive producers Todd Slavkin and Darren Swimmer and writer/executive producer Vaun Wilmott.