Apple Working on TV Show Adapted From Isaac Asimov's 'Foundation' Novels

[MacRumors]

Apple has inked a deal for a TV series adaptation of Isaac Asimov's Foundation science fiction novels, reports Deadline. The series, created by Skydance Television, is in development for straight-to-series consideration.

Skydance last June scored the rights to Asimov's estate, and since then, David S. Goyer and Josh Friedman, who will serve as executive producers and showrunners, have been working on developing a TV show based on the Foundation books. Goyer has previously worked on "The Dark Knight," "Batman Begins," Ghost Rider," and more, while Friedman is known for "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" and "Emerald City."

Foundation is Isaac Asimov's most popular and well-known science fiction series, which includes titular novel Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation, along with additional books Foundation's Edge and Foundation and Earth.

The series follows psychohistory expert and mathematician Hari Seldon who is able to predict the future. Seldon creates a group called the Foundation to preserve humanity's collective knowledge ahead of the impending fall of the Galactic Empire. The novels span many years and cover the rise and fall of multiple empires, so it isn't a simple undertaking to adapt it into a TV show.

Along with the Foundation-based TV show, Apple is working on several other science fiction shows, including a reboot of Steven Spielberg's "Amazing Stories," an untitled space drama developed by Ronald D. Moore, best known for the 2004 reboot of "Battlestar Galactica," and an epic world-building drama called "See," which is set in the future.

Apple has more than a dozen TV shows in development in total, and rumors have suggested we could see the first of these debut starting in 2019. For a full list of what Apple's working on, make sure to check out the original content section of our Apple TV roundup.

Article Link: Apple Working on TV Show Adapted From Isaac Asimov's 'Foundation' Novels

 

[asopublic]

Apple has inked a deal for a TV series adaption of Isaac Asimov's Foundation science fiction novels, reports Deadline. The series, created by Skydance television, is in development for straight-to-series consideration.

Skydance last June scored the rights to Asimov's estate, and since then, David S. Goyer and Josh Friedman, who will serve as executive producers and showrunners, have been working on developing a TV show based on the Foundation books. Goyer has previously worked on "The Dark Knight," "Batman Begins," Ghost Rider," and more, while Friedman is known for "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" and "Emerald City."

Foundation is Isaac Asimov's most popular and well-known science fiction series, which includes titular novel Foundation, Foundation and Empire, and Second Foundation, along with additional books Foundation's Edge and Foundation and Earth.

The series follows psychohistory expert and mathematician Hari Seldon who is able to predict the future. Seldon creates a group called the Foundation to preserve humanity's collective knowledge ahead of the impending fall of the Galactic Empire. The novels span many years and cover the rise and fall of multiple empires, so it isn't a simple undertaking to adapt it into a TV show.

Along with the Foundation-based TV show, Apple is working on several other science fiction shows, including a reboot of Steven Spielberg's "Amazing Stories," an untitled space drama developed by Donald D. Moore, best known for the 2004 reboot of "Battlestar Galactica," and an epic world-building drama called "See," which is set in the future.

Apple has more than a dozen TV shows in development in total, and rumors have suggested we could see the first of these debut starting in 2019. For a full list of what Apple's working on, make sure to check out the original content section of our Apple TV roundup.

Article Link: Apple Working on TV Show Adapted From Isaac Asimov's 'Foundation' Novels

[doublepost=1523377833][/doublepost]I can't wait!

 

[prasand]

Seems like a promising match-up. Emerald City was a great series, and interesting variation; highly underrated (NBC canceled it).

 

[DotCom2]

So far, none of the TV shows that have been rumored, do I have any interest in. SIGH

 

[0958400]

Oh Apple, focus.

 

[alex00100]

So far, none of the TV shows that have been rumored, do I have any interest in. SIGH

Same! It's like they made a poll of most popular genres and stars and just chose whatever fit.

 

[jordii]

So far, none of the TV shows that have been rumored, do I have any interest in. SIGH

Shows are just shows, but what's really interesting are your personal preferences!

Me? I like giraffes.

 

[neilw]

Now you've got my interest. Seems like a difficult series to adapt, and I'll be curious to see how they handle the tie-ins to his other series (particularly the Robots of Dawn and Robots and Empire books).

 

[turbineseaplane]

Ok Apple...
Keep scratching this useless content itch of yours..

(psst - you aren't good at this..)

 

[ChrisCW11]

Horrible news. I have been waiting for someone to adapt this book series to TV, but having it appear on Apple TV with its Disneyfication of entertainment content, it will prove disappointing.

I agree that sex and violence and swearing need not always proliferate on these kinds of entertainment services, but Apple drawing the line and declaring they will provide ONLY "wholesome" programming will leave this entire franchise crippled for creative direction. There is a healthy balance between forcing cloyingly sweet "family" focused entertainment vs something an adult can dig into and actually enjoy once the kids go to bed.

The only thing worse then hearing Apple will pick up this franchise would be to find out ABC Freeform was going to distribute it. I don't care of the pedigree behind the showrunners of this franchise, Apple will force their hands creatively to suit Apple and so it will suck, period.

 

[ocnitsa]

Horrible news. I have been waiting for someone to adapt this book series to TV, but having it appear on Apple TV with its Disneyfication of entertainment content, it will prove disappointing.

I agree that sex and violence and swearing need not always proliferate on these kinds of entertainment services, but Apple drawing the line and declaring they will provide ONLY "wholesome" programming will leave this entire franchise crippled for creative direction. There is a healthy balance between forcing cloyingly sweet "family" focused entertainment vs something an adult can dig into and actually enjoy once the kids go to bed.

The only thing worse then hearing Apple will pick up this franchise would be to find out ABC Freeform was going to distribute it. I don't care of the pedigree behind the showrunners of this franchise, Apple will force their hands creatively to suit Apple and so it will suck, period.

You have a valid concern, I think, regarding Apple's feelings about mature content (for lack of a better term).

I, personally, will reserve judgment before I see what happens.

Seeing the changes Spielberg made to Ready Player One, however, vs the book doesn't make me all that optimistic. I mean Foundation is nerd central and would have to be changed, I imagine, if someone was mass-marketing it.

 

[sartrekid]

Wow! Just a few days ago I started the book and last night I went to search whether there are any adaptations or plans thereof...

There's a reason why nobody has yet made a movie or series out of this (or the trilogy itself). I definitely will give it a try should they release it.

 

[GeneralChang]

I am one part skeptical and worried and one part shiveringly ecstatic. I adore this book and franchise, and Asimov will always be one of my absolute favorite authors. But hard sci-fi of this nature is inherently difficult to turn into mass-consumable entertainment, considering the thing most audiences connect with in fiction is characters, while hard sci-fi puts characterization in a back seat to the universe in which the story is set.

We'll see.

 

[itsmilo]

I hope they already got a second choice show runner lined up

 

[SteveJay10]

So far, none of the TV shows that have been rumored, do I have any interest in. SIGH

Foundation series is fantastic group of books. Much promise there.
[doublepost=1523379256][/doublepost]

Horrible news. I have been waiting for someone to adapt this book series to TV, but having it appear on Apple TV with its Disneyfication of entertainment content, it will prove disappointing.

I agree that sex and violence and swearing need not always proliferate on these kinds of entertainment services, but Apple drawing the line and declaring they will provide ONLY "wholesome" programming will leave this entire franchise crippled for creative direction. There is a healthy balance between forcing cloyingly sweet "family" focused entertainment vs something an adult can dig into and actually enjoy once the kids go to bed.

The only thing worse then hearing Apple will pick up this franchise would be to find out ABC Freeform was going to distribute it. I don't care of the pedigree behind the showrunners of this franchise, Apple will force their hands creatively to suit Apple and so it will suck, period.

The Foundation series is totally PG. virtually no sex and little in any of the books. So it’s perfect for Apple.

 

[GeneralChang]

Horrible news. I have been waiting for someone to adapt this book series to TV, but having it appear on Apple TV with its Disneyfication of entertainment content, it will prove disappointing.

I agree that sex and violence and swearing need not always proliferate on these kinds of entertainment services, but Apple drawing the line and declaring they will provide ONLY "wholesome" programming will leave this entire franchise crippled for creative direction. There is a healthy balance between forcing cloyingly sweet "family" focused entertainment vs something an adult can dig into and actually enjoy once the kids go to bed.

The only thing worse then hearing Apple will pick up this franchise would be to find out ABC Freeform was going to distribute it. I don't care of the pedigree behind the showrunners of this franchise, Apple will force their hands creatively to suit Apple and so it will suck, period.

I'm pretty sure that "disneyfication" will be the least of the issues inherent with this project. I honestly can't think of a single thing in the book that wouldn't be perfectly fine in a Disney film. You could maybe even make the thing PG without changing anything other than language.

There is some more mature content in some of the later(/earlier) books, but Foundation itself is very high-concept and sparse on details.

 

[AngerDanger]

Could… could it be… after years of developing shows about garish comedians singing in cars and pop stars judging apps, Apple might finally have something interesting for television?!

 

[quatermass]

Wow... On one side, I'm insanely excited to hear about this, and also filled with trepidation... anyone remember the monstrous carbuncle that was the movie "I, robot"? I just hope it's in the hands of people who've actually read the books and 'get' it. Someone once said of Asimov's stories that 'there's no action - it's all just talking', to which the answer was 'The talking IS the action"! Bizarrely, the first three books contain neither sex nor violence, and yet are still totally excellent. Creative direction not crippled by the lack thereof. It doesn't need to be turned into "Game of Thrones with Psychohistory" to be 'adult'.
Well, time will tell. Fingers crossed they don't try to make it "thin".

 

[ActionableMango]

This is interesting news, since HBO reportedly got this from Sundance and was going to work with Goyer:
http://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/foun...olan-bringing-isaac-asimovs-foundation-to-hbo

In fact this article is very similar to the HBO announcement with the same names involved, except swap "HBO" for "Apple".

 

[farmboy]

I guess I'm not quite so cynical about the prospects of Apple television shows. This is only the project development phase, it could all change completely before things launch.

As to Foundation, it's so massive that I think you need to bring in the Killer Bees (Bear, Benford, and Brin), who did the second series of Foundation books, to focus the show. I enjoyed their books even more than the original, and I am a big Asimov fan (very minor claim to fame, I met Asimov a couple of times around Chicago, friend of a friend thing. Funny and big personality...him, not me).

 

[schrodinger_cat]

What I really don't get about all those "Apple is producing original content" news is where the hell it will be distributed? On Apple Music? Is Netflix-like streaming service from Apple is finally coming? That's what really interesting.

 

[zephonic]

BEST NEWS EVER!

Greatest SF series of all time, I wondered why nobody ever made this into a movie/TV series.

Apple, please don’t f this up.

 

[ActionableMango]

What I really don't get about all those "Apple is producing original content" news is where the hell it will be distributed? On Apple Music? Is Netflix-like streaming service from Apple is finally coming? That's what really interesting.

iTunes does TV and Movies. Has done so for years.

I agree that sex and violence and swearing need not always proliferate on these kinds of entertainment services, but Apple drawing the line and declaring they will provide ONLY "wholesome" programming will leave this entire franchise crippled for creative direction.

A) You and I must have read very different Foundation series.
B) As far as I can tell, the producers/showrunners (Goyer and Friedman) are the exact same people involved when HBO was going to do this back in 2014, so the creative talent hasn't changed.

 

[schrodinger_cat]

iTunes does TV and Movies. Has done so for years.

But it doesn't make any sense, original and exclusive content is produced to get people subscribed to company service instead of rival ones. You sway customers to use your platform and earn money from subscription providing exclusives and multiplatform content. There is no subscription in iTunes Store and therefore absolutely no reason to produce such content. It would be a petty amount of money to Apple just simply sell this in iTunes Store.

 

[geenosr]

I am one part skeptical and worried and one part shiveringly ecstatic. I adore this book and franchise, and Asimov will always be one of my absolute favorite authors. But hard sci-fi of this nature is inherently difficult to turn into mass-consumable entertainment, considering the thing most audiences connect with in fiction is characters, while hard sci-fi puts characterization in a back seat to the universe in which the story is set.

We'll see.

I couldn't agree more. This is totally my favorite book/series from Asimov, and I really hope they do it justice. Apple, don't mess it up PLEASE!