Monday, November 13, 2006

Expect to See More Press Releases Like This...

For Immediate Release

WARNER HOME VIDEO TO RELEASE BRAND NEW “BABLYON 5” MADE FOR VIDEO IN 2007

BABYLON 5: THE LOST TALES TO BEGIN PRODUCTION NOVEMBER 13, 2006


BURBANK , CA , November 13, 2006 – Warner Home Video (WHV) and Warner Bros. Television (WBTV) have announced the start of production of “Babylon 5: The Lost Tales,” a made-for-video movie that will be targeted towards the Babylon 5 loyal audience and science-fiction fans in general . The announcement was jointly made by Jeff Brown, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Non-theatrical Franchise, Warner Home Video and Gregg Maday, Senior Vice President, Movies and Miniseries, WBTV.

WHV will be the home entertainment distributor for this made-for-DVD release which will include two new Babylon 5 stories collectively entitled “Voices of the Dark” in one film plus exclusive behind the scenes content. The stories will be written and directed by executive producer and original “ Babylon 5” creator J. Michael Straczynski. Executive producer Doug Netter also returns in that role. Actors from the original series that have signed on to participate in the project include Bruce Boxleitner (“President John Sheridan”), Tracy Scoggins (“Captain Elizabeth Lochley”) and Peter Woodward (“Galen”).

Babylon 5 is a top selling franchise on DVD to date with over $44 million in consumer sales. Launched in February 1993, the award winning series was a top rated show on television with more than 13.7 million viewers in its debut season. After its original planned five-year run – introducing the concept of a five year arc before other TV series began to use multi-season arcs -- the show went on to enjoy 9 successful years in syndication and Cable on the Sci-Fi Channel and TNT.

It also spurred the creation of five feature length movies based on the series including The Gathering, In the Beginning, Thirdspace, River of Souls and A Call to Arms, as well as the limited series Crusade. Babylon 5 has received numerous awards including two Emmys, two consecutive Hugo Awards, the Ray Bradbury Award for Dramatic Screenwriting from the Science Fiction Writers of America, five English Media ‘Cult TV’ Awards, the E Pluribus Unum Award from the American Cinema Foundation, the Sci-Fi Universe Reader Choice Award for Best TV Series and was the winner of the TV Guide Poll for Best Sci-Fi Show.

“We are very excited to be releasing this new made-for-video release filled with original content for ‘ Babylon 5’, one of the most successful science fiction series of all time,” said Jeff Brown. “This popular TV show which has been off the air for a few years continues to have a strong loyal fan base that is hungry for more content. This is the first time we’re utilizing one of our popular TV franchises as a made-for-video title, and we have a strong commitment to the growth of this sector.”

“It’s great to be reunited with Joe and Doug once again,” commented Maday. “I have always been very proud to be associated with their wonderful work on Babylon 5 and I’m confident the “Lost Tales” will add to the legacy of this very special franchise.”

On an immense space station built by the Earth Alliance in the 2250s, the crew of Babylon 5 are charged with maintaining the peace among the various alien races by providing a sanctuary where grievances and negotiations can be worked out among duly appointed ambassadors. Aside from its diplomatic function, Babylon 5 also serves as a military post for Earth and a port of call for travelers, traders, businessmen, criminals, and Rangers. The story of The Lost Tales picks up several years after the events of its original story, and follows several of its major characters in new adventures set against the backdrop of the Babylon 5 universe.

About Warner Home Video

With operations in 90 international territories Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, commands the largest distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video's film library is the largest of any studio,
offering top quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Home Video and New Line Home Entertainment.

About Warner Bros. Television

Warner Bros. Television (WBTV) is one of the entertainment industry's most respected providers of original content, producing award-winning drama and comedy series, made-for-television movies and miniseries for both network and cable television. Having produced 28 series for the 2006-2007 season, WBTV is the industry's number one supplier of primetime television programming, with multiple shows on each of the five broadcast networks, as well as numerous cable networks.

2 comments:

Kelly J. Crawford said...

Awesome! I loved that show.

Anonymous said...

More to the point:

Yay! A D2DVD business model!