The highly-anticipated reboot/revival of “Battlestar Galactica” is one step closer to invading your streaming screens. Produced by Sam Esmail, the new ‘BSG’ has found its leader—Michael Lesslie.
According to Deadline, Lesslie has been recruited to be the lead writer and showrunner for the new “Battlestar Galactica” series that is in development over at Peacock (NBCUniveral’s new streaming service that is expected to launch this summer). There’s no news about what the series might look like, other than the report saying Lesslie will “reimagine” the series for the new revival. Lesslie is perhaps best known as the screenwriter of Justin Kurzel’s “Assassin’s Creed.” He also wrote the screenplay for Kurzel’s “Macbeth,” as well as the acclaimed AMC series, “The Little Drummer Girl.”
“Battlestar Galactica” tells the story of the last remaining humans to survive a war with the evil robots known as Cylons, as they attempt to find the fabled Earth to restart their population. The original ‘BSG’ aired in 1978 but was canceled after only one season. However, the popularity grew thanks to the novels and comic books set in the universe. Then, in 2004, Ronald D. Moore revived the series with an acclaimed four-season run on Syfy, which spawned a short-lived prequel titled “Caprica.”
“I am beyond excited to be taking on this iconic and inspirational show,” said Lesslie. “As a lifelong devotee, I know that the possibilities of ‘Battlestar Galactica’s’ world are infinite and that each iteration has raised the bar for epic and intelligent sci-fi storytelling. The teams at Esmail Corp, UCP, and Peacock are second to none, and I already know that we are going to honor Glen A Larson and Ronald D Moore’s landmark series and break new boundaries with our own vision. It’s a dream come true – one I just can’t wait to share with fans, new and old alike. So say we all.”
As mentioned, the new ‘BSG’ will be executive produced by Esmail, who is best known as the man who created “Mr. Robot,” as well as the director of Amazon’s first season of “Homecoming.”
It’s still unknown when we might see the new “Battlestar Galactica” premiere on Peacock, but it would seem as if we are still pretty far away.