HOLLYWOOD June 19 (Gephardt Daily) — “Stargate” producers Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich are in active development for a “Stargate” trilogy.
The original film, released in 1994, starred Kurt Russell, James Spader and French Stewart. The film opened Oct. 28 and did a worldwide box office of $196.5 million in its seven weeks in release.
According to EWOnline, Roland Emmerich’s 1994 film “Stargate” was originally designed as a trilogy, but MGM decided to launch three TV companion series.
The TV series starred Richard Dean Anderson, Michael Shanks, Amanda Tapping and Christopher Judge.
Devlin says they have to start over from scratch in order to fulfill the original vision. The new film is being produced by MGM and Warner Bros. The film is being written by “Independence Day: Resurgence” writers James A. Woods and Nicolas Wright.
“At the time that we made it, every single studio in Hollywood had told me that science-fiction was dead,” Devlin told Variety in an interview.
“And Roland and I really love science-fiction, so I think that’s partly why it worked and resonated. It wasn’t a cynical attempt to try and make something that was crowd-pleasing.”
Noting “what happened with the rights and changes at the studio,” Devlin remarked how “we never got to do parts two and three,” but that could change with the reboot.
“It’s not a story that can take place 20 years later,” he explained. “So the only way to really tell that trilogy is to go back from the beginning and start the story all over again.”
Devlin added, “It was taken away from us, and it’s tough to have your children raised by other parents, even if they do a very good job. … For us, it’s not putting down what has been done. It’s to let us finish telling our story.”
Jonathan Glickman, president of MGM’s Motion Picture Group, said that when he ascended to the position in 2011, the property “had been dormant and, for lack of a better term, it had played itself out at that moment,” according to Variety.
In the company’s discussions about revitalizing “Stargate,” Glickman says, it was decided that “the only way to really give a boost of adrenaline and give the franchise the rebirth that it deserves was to bring back Roland and Dean.”
As for how their plans have changed over the past 22 years, Devlin says the only difference is the scope.
“Today, studios tend to not think of movies as trilogies or sequels (but) as cinematic universes,” he points out. “So as we’ve been developing it, we found all these avenues that allow it to expand. The foundation is exactly the same as what we wanted to do, but now the possibilities are much wider.”
The original Stargate trailer:
