HBO Announces Fall Debut for Long-Delayed WESTWORLD
It’s been an interesting couple of weeks for HBO. As in a “May you live in interesting times” kind of way. Just last week there was … animated fan reaction to the Game of Thrones episode “The Door” (read Kiri’s recap here). And earlier this year, Michael Lombardo left his position as programming president, with Casey Bloys named as Lombardo’s replacement. This has resulted in several projects — the Lewis & Clark miniseries from Tom Hanks, for example — in limbo or completely scrapped altogether. But on the up side, HBO did include Westworld in its list of new shows coming this fall.
Based on the film by Michael Crichton, this remake is a 10-episode series exploring the amusement park where androids provide visitors with every form of wish fulfillment. Sir Anthony Hopkins stars as the inventor of the park known as Delos, where three “worlds — West World, Medieval World, and Roman World — provide immersive entertainment for the masses.
James Marsden, Evan Rachel Wood, and Thandie Newton will portray some of the robots, giving them plenty of opportunity to play a variety of characters within the three worlds, as they can be killed and recycled with new personalities.
The production was originally set for a 2015 debut, but production delays caused the network to shut down the operation and re-evaluate. The series is being produced through J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot Productions along with Jerry Weintraub Productions, Kilter Films, and Warner Bros. Television. Executive producers are Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy, J.J. Abrams, Jerry Weintraub, and Bryan Burk.
No official date has been announced, but Westworld is at least on the list for fall. Are you looking forward to a return to Delos?
