Fox ropes a sci-fi Western

Last time Fox combined sci fi and Western the result was the unfortunately short-lived “Firefly” … lets hope this untitled project has a better fate…

By Nellie Andreeva

Fox has roped in a Western drama from “Chuck” executive producerScott Rosenbaum.

The untitled project, from Warner Bros. TV and McG’s studio-basedWonderland Sound and Vision, has landed a script commitment with asignificant penalty.

Described as an epic Western with a sci-fi twist, the show willrevolve around “a gunslinger caught between worlds” and willfeature a nod to “Planet of the Apes,” said Rosenbaum, who isexecutive producing with Wonderland’s McG and Peter Johnson.

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“What I’m really interested in is the revamping of the Westerngenre where you still have all of the iconic Western themes andiconic Western tropes but the idea is that it will feel incrediblycontemporary and will introduce the Western to a whole newgeneration,” Rosenbaum said.

Rosenbaum, who was under a blind script deal at WBTV, had beenseeking to do a Western with sci-fi elements for years. Hementioned the idea in a passing conversation with Johnson, who alsois an exec producer on “Chuck.”

Johnson, in turn, had just met with Fox entertainment presidentKevin Reilly and exec vp Matt Cherniss, who had told him that theywere looking to do a revamped Western this developmentseason.

Rosenbaum had worked with Reilly and Cherniss at FX, where theywere entertainment president and senior vp, respectively, and hewas an exec producer on “The Shield.” He pitched his idea to them,and the project was quickly set up at network.

Wonderland has strong ties with Fox, where the company landed itsfirst series, “Fastlane” and “The O.C.”

Wonderland is behind the network’s new drama “Human Target,” whichjoins the company’s returning series “Chuck” and”Supernatural.”

Rosenbaum is repped by UTA and attorney Michael Gendler.