Earlier today, Deadline reported that SyFy has picked up a 12 Monkeys series, from the pilot by Nikita creators Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett. SyFy has issued a twelve-episode order for the show, presumably one episode for each monkey (hurr fuckin’ hurr.) The show will premiere in January of next year, and Natalie Chaidez (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) will serve as showrunner.
I can’t help but be excited for this. 12 Monkeys is one of my top three favorite Terry Gilliam films, and I think the premise could lend itself to some really cool scenarios. SyFy’s original programming can be hit or miss, but they’ve been doing a pretty okay job ever since Battlestar Galactica. The show will star Aaron Stanford (X2, The Hills Have Eyes, Nikita) as James Cole, the time-traveling protagonist played by Bruce Willis in the 1995 film. Filling out the cast will be Amanda Schull, Zeljko Ivanek, Noah Bean, and Kirk Acevedo.
I’d summarize the plot for you, but the basic synopsis isn’t any different from the film’s basic premise. If you wanna know what 12 Monkeys is about, do yourself a favor and watch the damn movie. Just be prepared for an all-time great Brad Pitt performance, and watch as all the great one-liners are delivered by people that are not Bruce Willis.