The 2004 WB Pilot

As for the pilot being shown again at the 40th Fest, I really hope it will be. I'd love to get the chance to see it again - and I'd especially like to see other fans get the opportunity to see it because it really should be seen by as many fans as possible. But according to Shadowgram Update #138's DS Fest "Hollywood Weekend" Report: "The 2004 DS pilot for the WB was shown in an exclusive one-time-only screening." I suppose all we can do is hope that something can and will be worked out to show it again...

Don't believe everything you read in Shadowgram.     I have a sneaking suspician they WILL show it again, since it's the 40th anniversary and everything.

That'd be like the cabbage deciding to sell the refrigerator because it didn't like sitting next to the eggs and tomatoes.

That has got to be the funniest shit I have ever heard in my life. ROFLMAO.  DYING OVER HERE.  Great Darren.  Simply genious!!

Reading all this about the 2004 pilot is quite saddening.  Thankfully I have the Depp movie to look forward too.  NEVERTHELESS, I STILL want to see the pilot as I followed it fervently and was beyond consolable when it wasn't picked up.  OVER IT for the whole 2004-2005 season!

i hope they'd put the remake pilot on it as well as a bonus.

Just recently I was rereading an article about the '04 pilot, and it makes it seem as if ever seeing the '04 pilot released is highly unlikely. The pilot's producer/writer Mark Verheiden is quoted as saying, "Since the editing was never finished, more money would have to be spent to polish it and fix the FX. In addition, the cost to use the temp track music would be incredibly cost-prohibitive, so it would need to be replaced with library music or a cheap new score. After spending $5.5 million for the pilot, it's highly doubtful the studio will 'throw bad money after good.'"

True, Verheiden made those remarks six years ago, so things could change. But given today's economy, it seems more likely that they've changed for the worse and not the better, so it seems even less likely that the studio would be willing to spend money on fixing the pilot...

I don't remember why they had to use an expensive temp track when they could have used Dark Shadows tracks previously used and very available? Doesn't DCP own some of the rights to the music? The also failed Lost In Space WB pilot filmed in the same year made its way to the public domain although it seems more polished and complete. This is from Youtube probably taken from a bootleg. Just wondering if people here would want to see the 2004 DS pilot in this type of poor quality on Youtube or not see it at all?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VAT4tjjzOCk&feature=related

Having seen the unreleased pilot--it's not like some fabulous gem to swoon over or anything.  Mostly what it is, is an unfulfilled promise.  There are a couple of good scenes in it, and the Scots actor who played Barnabas (Alec Newman???) was brilliant, and the guy who played Willie had a tousled sexiness that was alluring (Matt Czuchny??? my short term memory is in tatters now).  I absolutely hated the ending (apologies to those who loved it) because it was so corny, dumb, and typical WB crapola--but for those who like that sort of thing...

I really can't believe they spent five million dollars (plus) on it--cha ching, cha ching cha ching--not much of the money shows up on screen...

G.

For the life of me, I can't imagine why they would want to fix up and release the 2004 pilot, a show that never made it on the air, and that doesn't stand alone as its own movie. I've seen it shown at the festivals. Since the show never continued, the pilot is a mere curiosity to DS fans, not a marketable product.

I love what they accomplished with the WB pilot, but something we tend to forget is that it's just a rough cut - it's not polished. There's two primary reasons for that: 1) it was going over budget, and 2) postproduction was ceased before it could be completed. It's common practice to use a temp music track while editing (which is why the pilot feature already existing music cues from Jennifer 8, Klute, and Deep Red) and time simply ran out before an original score could be done. Time also ran out before all the CGI sequences could be completed (about 80% of them were done - and there are simply place holders where the CGI is missing) and all the scenes could have been edited to where they wanted them. One of the scenes that was not completely edited was the scene at the end.

Sometimes we also forget that a pilot is designed to show the networks what a show could be and where it could go. It's not necessarily supposed to be perfect, which is why many pilots (at least as shown to the networks) are never shown on the air and many are actually reshot.

Well I would love to see it as is!  Even if I get to the festival I would like to have the pilot on DVD perhaps as bonus.  I am one of those people who likes all of the DS interpretations.  According to the Fangoria article as MB said the ending wouldn't have ended up being like it was presented! As for the WB churning out crapola I guess it's a matter of taste.   I would have been bored if is wasn't for the WB the last decade!  It still saddens me that this wasn't reworked and made into a series.  As I have said before I am really excited about the movie.  However a series (as we know) can delve so much deeper!   My thoughts perhaps may change after seeing it but I have read so much about it I feel like I know the pilot.  I liked a lot of the chances that were taken with casting a blonde Victoria, a Asian and beautiful Julia and African American Sheriff Patterson! Just my two cents!

Well I would love to see it as is!

Don't get me wrong. As reading the comments I'd posted in this topic in '05 after having seen it show, I believe the pilot is definitely well worth seeing. In fact, parts of it are amazing.    It's just that, barring some sort of miracle, the likelihood of it ever being "officially" released to the public would seem slim. 

I gotcha MB!  My luck they will quit showing it at the fests! I am so suprised it has never leaked.  Somebody has it under lock and key for sure!

Since it's highly unlikely that the pilot will ever enter the public domain (like the LIS pilot), can somebody maybe give a detailed synopsis of it?  Obviously, the overwhelming majority of us will never see it, so it certainly wouldn't be a spoiler.  And even if it was made available, most of us, even after knowing the plot, would like to see it anyway.

Gerard

I actually think if you look back through this thread u will find what you are looking for!  

Revisiting this topic here:

WB 2004 Pilot Redux

1stly it's been awhile since i last popped up in here. so my apologies for being away so long. i accidently deleted the bookmark awhile back. plus i didn't have a computer for quite a long time. anyways, so 2ndly they have the "Lost In Space" pilot  on You tube? i've gotta watch that tomorrow IF it's still there!

that's my favorite show of ALL time. "DS" is my 2nd favorite show of all time. anyways, i still have yet to see the DS pilot though. maybe someday. by the time i make it to a convention the entire cast & crew will prolly be passed on unfortunally.


so i hope it won't be THAT long from me. oh well anyways, i was just reading on the discussion Boards on 'IMDB" & people were talking about the johny Depp film & all that. since this thread isn't about that film i don't need to ramble on what was said. my point is it got me thinking about this site. & it said which i did forget about was about the original show, they are going to repackage it? how ? i didn't see a thread here about it so i ask here, it's also 5 am & i came home from work not to long ago so i'm a bit tired & that's why i didn't start a new thread.  my point in asking about that in this thread is simply this,


i noticed someone posted my talk about this thread on another thread. which i found quite funny since i haven't been here for awhile. anyways, also reading this thread it got me wondering if they are going to repackage them for some reason?
if anyone knew if the pilot that is talked about in this thread is perhaps going to be on it? anyways thanxs for your help ahead of time. & i hope to talk to you all soon. i have to go to bed you see.  so nite for now.