SYFY has just announced a new series called The Ark, to be written and produced by Dean Devlin, the writer and producer behind science fiction classics Independence Day and Stargate. The series will follow a group of surviving crew members of the Ark One spacecraft after the ship has suffered a critical blow.
The series is set to take place 100 years in the future, when rescue missions are set out for planetary colonization in order to save the human race from extinction. After one such ship, the Ark One, suffers critical damage, the remaining crew will have to join together to survive the trajectory of the Ark's journey outwards, which is supposed to extend for over a year. With dwindling supplies, no leadership, and their mission set into chaos, the remaining crew members will have to join together to survive.
Devlin, who is a legend of the genre in his own right, is joined by Jonathan Glassner as co-showrunner. Glassner previously worked as a writer and producer on the cult series Stargate SG-1. Of Glassner's inclusion on the upcoming project, Devlin said, “I’m so excited to have the opportunity to partner with SYFY again and can’t think of a better collaborator than Jonathan Glassner to bring this series to life."
SYFY has had explosive success in recent years with its original programming. The channel had two of the top three new cable series in 2021 for viewers 18-49 with Resident Alien, a comedy-drama series starring Alan Tudyk that follows an alien who takes up residence in a small mountain town and Chucky, a TV series reboot of the classic horror-comedy film franchise that follows a serial killer forced into doll form. The Chucky series marks a return to the franchise for the film's creator Don Mancini.
Of the new series, Lisa Katz, President of Scripted Content for NBCU Entertainment and Streaming said,“‘The Ark’ is a perfect fit for SYFY audiences and we know fans will gravitate to this heart-racing story from Dean Devlin, one of the most accomplished and respected sci-fi writers working today." She continued, “[w]ith the recent success of both ‘Resident Alien’ and ‘Chucky,’ the network is home to several of the most creative storytellers working in all of television.”
No release date or exact plot details have yet been released for The Ark. The series will begin production in March at PFI Studios in Belgrade, Serbia. No casting announcements have yet been made as casting has not yet started. SYFY has ordered 12 episodes of the new series.