Here’s a partnership I don’t think anybody saw coming: beloved genre writer/producer Ronald D. Moore and Bryan Cranston are teaming up for an anthology series based on the work legendary sci-fi author Philip K. Dick. How did the pop-culture icon (Cranston) and the quiet cult-writer (Moore) even meet? Who cares, this alliance is a trinity straight from TV heaven.
Electric Dreams: The World of Philip K. Dick will be a 10-episode series which Variety reports was commissioned for England’s Channel 4.The series will eventually be distributed worldwide by Sony. Each episode will bring together British and American writers to adapt one of Dick’s short stories for the small screen.
Moore has long been known to sci-fi/fantasy fans as one of the geniuses behind Syfy’s reimagined Battlestar Galactica. He’s also had success overseeing the currently running adaptation of Outlander, for Starz, and with niche shows like Carnivale, and Roswell. Best known for television work. he’s also been tapped for some big-screen scripts including Mission Impossible 2 and the upcoming I, Robot 2.
Cranston, of course, saw global success with Breaking Bad, his pitch-perfect performance that turned Walter White into one of the most hotly debated antiheroes to hit the screen. But over a career spanning 3 decades he’s also garnered fans from his comedic roles on Malcolm in the Middle and The Cleveland Show, and drama performances like Argo and The Lincoln Lawyer.
Both will serve as executive producers on the series with Cranston appearing on screen as roles allow. Dick’s daughter, Isa Dick Hackett will join as an executive producer, a role she’s also filled on Amazon’s adaptation of her father’s novel The Man in the High Castle.
In a statement Hackett commented, “I’m thrilled to be working with this exceptional team to bring my father’s short stories to life. Often the source for big, high concept feature films, these short stories represent some of the most dazzling conceptual work of his career, and the fact that they will be adapted by such a diverse set of creative voices is truly an honour.”
Dick’s work has a strong record of success in big screen adaptations: “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” turned into Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, “We Can Remember it for You Wholesale” is better known to film audiences as Total Recall. “Paycheck”, “A Scanner Darkly”, and “Minority Report” were all short stories adapted under their own title. With more than 120 short stories and 44 of Dick’s novels in print, there will be many options for the show’s creators to choose from.
Cranston said “This is an electric dream come true. We are so thrilled to be able to explore and expand upon the evergreen themes found in the incredible work of this literary master.”