Stargate’s Return Might Begin With A Feature Film

The Stargate TV and film franchise is back in the trade headlines today, with a new report from Deadline on Amazon’s deliberations over what to do with its newly acquired MGM franchises.

The report states that Amazon is considering both film and television projects for Stargate, “with a movie likely going first.”

Deadline’s sources tell it that “A-list creative auspices have reached out to inquire about adapting MGM IP which they are fans of,” while Amazon has also been relying on its own creative partners for some projects.

An established science fiction franchise like Stargate seems ripe for the big-budget, theatrical blockbuster treatment. According to insiders Amazon is looking to spend more than $1 billion per year on movies, with around 12 to 15 films bound for cinemas.

Robocop is in much the same boat, meanwhile, though here the studio may be inclined to start with television. The franchise was last rebooted with a 2014 film starring Joel Kinnaman, which was a modest hit with audiences. Legally Blonde is also a priority, with a feature script co-written by Mindy Kaling and Dan Goor in the works for several years now. (Kaling recently spoke about that project with Time.)

Sources also told Deadline that Fame, Barbershop, and The Magnificent Seven are being developed for television, while The Thomas Crown Affair and The Pink Panther may get movies first.

SOMETHING NEW

But as far as Stargate goes, take the recent Internet headlines with a grain of salt: this does not mean that a new Stargate series as been “announced” or “confirmed.” Not yet, anyway. It only means that Amazon is working on something(s) and trying to decide what to do with the brand, and whom to do it with.

One thing that does seem confirmed at this point is that Amazon is not interested in producing Brad Wright’s pilot script for a new show — the fourth set in the universe he established in co-creating Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis, and Stargate Universe.

That chapter of the franchise evidently closed in 2011, when SGU went off the air. The series was cancelled unceremoniously by Syfy Channel after two seasons. MGM’s most recent effort, 2018’s low-budget Web series Stargate Origins, came from new creatives who took their cues chiefly from the original feature film.

“I am sure MGM and Amazon will do something with the franchise,” Wright said in a Reddit AMA in December. “I am less sure if I will have anything to do with it. A few years ago now, MGM reached out to me and asked me to develop a pilot script for a new series, but so much has changed since then, including all of the players. Amazon is probably deciding what to do with Stargate as a tent-pole franchise and that may take some time. I wish them well.”

Passing on Wright’s pilot doesn’t mean that Amazon will end up opting for a total reboot, however. We hear that part of its current deliberations concerns whether to reboot Stargate from scratch, or create something that maintains continuity with what has come before — which viewers are still streaming from Prime Video in droves every day — while also giving newcomers an easy on-ramp.

AMAZON’S SLOW TRAIN

Today’s report at Deadline reinforces much of what we already know about the status of Stargate: Amazon is looking to put a new project into active development and has been taking meetings with potential producers, but hasn’t settled on its final decision yet. What is new in this report is the suggestion that the studio may be inclined to begin on the big screen, and then follow up with a TV series later.

The retail and studio giant purchased MGM for $8.45 billion in 2022, in part for its existing film and television library but also to make new content with MGM’s IP — intellectual property like Stargate, Rocky and Creed, James Bond, Robocop, Vikings, Legally Blonde, and more.

So yes, of course Amazon is currently trying to decide on its long-term game plan for the Stargate franchise. It’s safe to say that the studio would like to build a universe that can support multiple TV series, films, licensed tie-ins such as books, comics, and video games, and more. (That, it seems, will require a strategy that does not alienate Stargate’s current global fan base, which is still millions strong.)

The studio is taking its time (the MGM deal closed more than a year ago now) to get the details right — and to find creatives that they want to entrust with shepherding the franchise.

Amazon and MGM took pitches from writers late last year, which reportedly included the likes of The Expanse TV creators Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby. There is no solid word today on whether that pair is still in the mix.

We hope to have something more solid to report in 2023, as Amazon finally decides where to invest its time and money in reviving Stargate for global audiences. Stick with GateWorld for the latest!