Battlestar Galactica movie, Peacock series will be part of a shared universe

More than two years have gone by since it was announced that Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail will be overseeing a new update of the sci-fi series Battlestar Galactica for the Peacock streaming service, and more than a year has gone by since Simon Kinberg signed on to become the latest person to write a screenplay for a Battlestar Galactica feature film. It’s taking a while for these projects to go into production, but they are still in the works – and while speaking with Collider, Kinberg said there will be some connection between the two.

In terms of the situation with Sam and the show, I can’t say too much about it other than there is synergy between the two enterprises and constant communication between us. We’ve become close and been having a really good time together and there will be, for lack of a better phrase and it’s an overused phrase, a shared universe.”

As for the status of the Battlestar Galactica film itself, Kinberg said a second draft of the script has been completed and they’re currently searching for a director. He says they’ll “probably” start filming next year.

The first iteration of Battlestar Galactica made its debut in 1978 and was cancelled after one season. Fan outcry led to a revival called Galactica 1980, which also lasted only one season. A 2003 reboot mini-series led into four seasons of a new series that was followed by two short-lived prequels, Caprica and Blood & Chrome.

Esmail has said that his series will not be a reboot of what Ronald D. Moore did with the 2003 – 2009 version of Battlestar Galactica, but that “We’ll explore a new story within the mythology while staying true to the spirit of Battlestar.” So if Esmail’s series exists within the mythology of Moore’s show and Kinberg’s film exists in a shared universe with Esmail’s series, are these new projects basically follow-ups to the Moore version of Battlestar Galactica? Fans will have to wait and see to figure out how well all of these things go together.