Amazon Likely To Reboot Stargate As Brad Wright’s Pilot “Destined To Gather Dust”
John F. Trent
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It’s more than likely that Prime Video and Amazon Studios will be rebooting Stargate after their acquisition of MGM back in May 2021.
Richard Dean Anderson as Colonel Jack O’Neill and Amanda Tapping as Major Samantha Carter in Stargate SG-1
MGM had previously contracted with Wright, who wrote the original Stargate SG-1 TV series as well as Stargate: Atlantis and Stargate: Universe.
Back in September 2020, Stargate franchise writer and producer Joseph Mallozzi confirmed progress was being made on a new series from Wright.
He wrote on Twitter, “If the new Stargate series Brad Wright is working on gets off the ground, we’ll be seeing quite a few familiar faces.”
Joseph Mallozzi Twitter
Back then, Mallozzi detailed on Reddit that if things progressed it might have been possible for the series to get a pick up and have a premiere by late 2021.
Joseph Mallozzi Reddit
However, it appears the new series from Brad Wright has been completely shelved. In November, Wright gave an update on where he was with the new series.
He wrote, “You won’t hear news from me. MGM did hire me to write a pilot for a new show but that was just before covid hit. Timing couldn’t have been much worse. All the players have changed in the interim so it’s likely destined to gather dust.”
“Would’ve been fun, though,” he added.
Brad Wright Twitter
Mallozzi would further indicate the series from Wright was dead replying to another question in the thread about a possible fan campaign and tweetstorm.
He tweeted, “I’m sure Amazon is well aware of the tweetstorms and the fans’ desire for new Stargate. There will be a new series eventually but no way of knowing who will be behind it.”
“Hollywood generally prefers the flavors of the week,” he added.
Joseph Mallozzi Twitter
Mallozzi would further write in a blog post on his website that there is an “increasing likelihood that the existing Stargate canon will be phased out as Amazon moves forward with a reboot of the franchise.”
Indeed, when Amazon announced their purchase of MGM they indicated they would be reimaging many of their properties.
Senior Vice President of Prime Video and Amazon Studios Mike Hopkins stated in a press release announcing the purchase, “MGM has a vast catalog with more than 4,000 films—12 Angry Men, Basic Instinct, Creed, James Bond, Legally Blonde, Moonstruck, Poltergeist, Raging Bull, Robocop, Rocky, Silence of the Lambs, Stargate, Thelma & Louise, Tomb Raider, The Magnificent Seven, The Pink Panther, The Thomas Crown Affair, and many other icons—as well as 17,000 TV shows—including Fargo, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Vikings—that have collectively won more than 180 Academy Awards and 100 Emmys.”
He then added, “The real financial value behind this deal is the treasure trove of IP in the deep catalog that we plan to reimagine and develop together with MGM’s talented team. It’s very exciting and provides so many opportunities for high-quality storytelling.”
Goa’uld Ha’tak starship via Stargate SG-1
YouTuber Nerd Cookies did not take kindly to the news that Amazon shelved Brad Wright’s pilot.
She states, “It’s frustratingly typical of studios who buy franchises and aren’t willing to put in the work to create something that expands, enriches, and respects what came before.”
“Lore, canon and fandoms are viewed with disdain while flavor of the week creators continue churning out reboots,” she adds.
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Nerd Cookies then expresses her disappointment, “Previously, I had hoped that Amazon was simply getting reorganized after such a monumental purchase of MGM and that it would just be a matter time before Wright’s script was greenlit. However, now it seems as time passes that this is less and less likely.”
“In light of this new information, I once again find myself feeling exasperated by another Hollywood studio’s apparent mismanagement of yet another beloved franchise,” she says. “Disney, Warner Bros., Amazon, and the like seem to place themselves continually in opposition to the fans.
Christopher Judge as Teal’c and Tony Amendola as Master Bra’tac in Stargate SG-1
“Too often these companies refuse to give audiences what they want as they strive to appease their own selfish professional ambitions,” she declares. “They continue to purchase or inherit beloved IPs and then seek to impose their own vision and skewed understanding on to the various mythologies and the characters within. Often their attitude is that fans should just be glad to get anything at all under the banner of a franchise’s name.
“And then there are those who refuse to do anything with a beloved IP, instead prioritizing creatively bankrupt content with a popular brand name and no substance or quality storytelling behind it,” she asserts.
Rachel Hayward as Sgt. Carol Weterings in Stargate SG-1
What do you make of Brad Wright’s Stargate pilot being shelved by Amazon?
NEXT: Stargate Actor David Hewlett Signs and Shares Petition Calling for Franchise Revival!
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