When Galaxy Quest came out in 1999, it was met with praise from both Star Trek fans and those who maybe never went where no man had gone before. It highlighted the joy that shows like Star Trek bring to fans while also poking a bit of “light” fun at conventions, actors, and the experience of being a fan as a whole. And it just really worked and is one of those movies that, to this day, is still a fun time to watch. I would know: I rewatched it the night before this news dropped, unknowingly.
The news, you might ask? A new television series based on Galaxy Quest is heading our way. And this isn’t the first time that they attempted to make it. Paul Scheer, Simon Pegg, and Georgia Pritchett have all had their own versions of a Galaxy Quest television series in the works at some point or another, and with this one, we don’t know who the creative team is outside of Mark Johnson, who was a producer on the original film.
According to Variety, Paramount Television Studios and Paramount+ are bringing this to life, which is sort of funny given that Paramount+ is the home to all our of Star Trek shows (and is premiering the series finale for Star Trek: Picard later this week). So it is honestly a really good fit for a series about Galaxy Quest. And that’s about all we know, currently—no word yet on the plot or a release window, and with development in the very early stages, we’re not likely to actually be able to watch this any time soon.
But it is still exciting for fans of the movie to know that it is yet again in talks of happening. I’d love if it went further this time around but that is something we’ll have to wait for.
Will the original cast return for the Galaxy Quest TV show?
We don’t know much about it right now. Just that it is happening. The film’s cast included Tim Allen, Alan Rickman, Sigourney Weaver, Tony Shalhoub, Sam Rockwell, Daryl Mitchell, Enrico Colantoni, and Robin Sachs. And we’ve since seen everyone go on to other franchises, bigger roles, and find success in other aspects of their career. And we unfortunately lost Rickman to cancer back in 2016 (which did end talks of the Amazon-produced take on Galaxy Quest).
The idea would be that the cast would also return for this, right? If not, I could see them making this the “next generation” for the series, which makes sense given that it’s a commentary on Star Trek and its cultural power. But until we know more, we’re just living in a world where yet again, people are talking about Galaxy Quest and how great that movie is. And with the right creative team, this could be what fans have been waiting nearly 25 years to see.
Never give up, never surrender, and never underestimate a bunch of people who love a comedy from 1999. We will show up and support whatever new project people want to do for it because Galaxy Quest is just that kind of movie that lives in your head rent free. I hope Justin Long comes back too though.
(featured image: Gran Via Productions)
