Photo Credit: Syfy
Last week, Syfy announced the premiere date for the mini-series, Childhood’s End, one that I’ve been looking forward to for the better part of a year now. Arthur C. Clarke’s Childhood’s End, one of the most-acclaimed science fiction novels of all time, will come to life in the first-ever adaptation beginning December 14 on Syfy. This six-hour television event from Syfy and Universal Cable Productions will air over three consecutive nights on Monday, December 14, Tuesday, December 15 and Wednesday, December 16 from 8-10PM (ET/PT).
Executive produced by award-winning producers Akiva Goldsman (Lone Survivor, A Beautiful Mind, I Am Legend) and Michael De Luca (Captain Phillips, Moneyball, The Social Network), the star-studded cast is led by Charles Dance (Game of Thrones), Mike Vogel (Under the Dome), Daisy Betts (The Last Resort), Yael Stone (Orange is the New Black), Julian McMahon (Nip/Tuck), Osy Ikhile (The Fear) and Colm Meaney (Star Trek: The Next Generation).
Childhood’s End follows the peaceful invasion of Earth by the alien Overlords, who promise to eliminate poverty, war and sickness – ushering in a golden age of peace, health and security for all of humankind. But why do the Overlords insist on hiding their appearance – and what do they ultimately want from Earth? While much of the world enjoys its newfound utopia, some suspect there’s a price to pay. As the truth about the Overlords’ intentions are revealed, humanity will discover its actual destiny may actually be a nightmare, instead of a dream.
The miniseries is directed by Nick Hurran, who is well-known for his fantastic work with Sherlock and Dr. Who. I attended San Diego Comic-Con last month and was fortunate enough to attend the Press Room for the show. I chatted with Hurran, who spoke very enthusiastically about the series and what viewers should expect. “The story is about the lives of the human beings who are affected by a giant event,” said Hurran of the story in which humanity is offered the chance to solve all its problems by an alien who claims to be Earth’s administrator (Charles Dance). “As much as its about the giant event, it’s really about the effect that has on a number of human beings. Is it ‘be careful what you wish for?’ There’s a telling passage in the book that says, ‘the only enemy of utopia is boredom.'”
Photo Credit: TV Geek Talk/Mary Powers
At the panel while answering fan concerns about how true the series will stay to the original book, Executive Producer Matthew Graham said, that he “tried to preserve what was important about the book. If I left anything out, Nick would come up to me with the book, with passages underscored to say, ‘what about this?’ It’s challenging to decide how to fix the world in 88 minutes. You have to show minutes and hope the audience fills in the rest. You can’t go into too much detail, otherwise it starts to turn the story into a fairy tale. That was the biggest challenge, and also the most fun.”
Although Hurran provided no spoilers of course, staying true to the novel means that the utopia created comes with its own problems, and Curran did go on to confirm that the ending of the novel is the end of the series, as final as that might sound. “The title of the series tells you all you need to know about the ending,” Curran teased.
Childhood’s End premieres on December 14th at 8/7c on Syfy. In the meantime, check out the below San Diego Comic-Con video interview and the series’ official trailer.
VIDEO
Nick Hurran SDCC 2015 Interview:
Trailer:
