‘The Orville’ Harkens Back to “Aspirational” Sci-Fi, according to Seth McFarlane

The Orville‘ is one of the upcoming shows this fall that I’m actually really excited for. A few months ago, we were treated to the trailer for the Seth McFarlane scribed show. ‘The Orville‘ serves as his first foray into live action television, with Jon Favreau directing the Pilot for the series.

Recently on the TV Critics Association press tour, McFarlane spoke about the series:

via Fox

Star Trek itself sprang from a lot of different sci-fi tropes that came before it. The idea of a ship, in the naval sense, cruising in space did not originate with that show. I miss the…aspirational place Star Trek used to occupy. They’ve chosen to go in a different direction. They can’t all be Hunger Games. There is some space for aspirational. The Orville is an attempt to fill that void.”

Mentioning that:

“I miss the optimism. I’m tired of being told everything is going to be grim and dystopian…I miss the hopeful side of science fiction.”

When asked about the similarities and differences between ‘The Orville’ and ‘Star Trek: Discovery‘, Executive Producer David Goodman Responded:

“I think there is room for two spaceship shows. There’s more than one cop show.”

MacFarlane added that the two shows are fundamentally different, saying that they

HE ORVILLE: L-R Seth MacFarlane, Penny Johnson Jerald, Adrianne Palicki, Halston Sage and guest star Brian George in THE ORVILLE premiering this fall on FOX. ©2017 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: FOX
Via Fox

“Could not be more different (tonally speaking). They’re (Star Trek: Discovery) continuing in the new direction they’ve chosen to go with that franchise; we’re more old school.”

When Fox CEO Dana Walden about any legal troubles that might arise from the similarities between the two shows, she responded:

“We’re not really concerned. We obviously have a big legal team. We vet things, so it’s not like we’re just flying by the seat of our pants out here. Seth’s intention is to do something that clearly pays homage to Star Trek, that clearly was inspired a lot by Star Trek. I can’t imagine, especially when you see the direction that the Star Trek franchise is moving, that anyone would consider it anything other than a compliment,” she said, adding “most shows have some DNA of previous shows.”

The Orville‘ premieres on September 10, 2017.

About Taylor Salan

Taylor Salan is a independent filmmaker who currently resides in the San Fernando Valley. Since childhood, Taylor Salan had a fascination with movies. Although he was an avid fan of film as a child, it wasn’t until his years as a young adult that his passion for the art of filmmaking truly came to fruition. A current student of the film production program at California State University Northridge, Taylor studies Cinematography but ultimately has plans to direct full time if afforded the opportunity. In his spare time, Taylor produces audio podcasts and blogs about film for ageofthenerd.com. He is also a longtime musician, playing drums for over 8 years.

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