Roush on Dollhouse
Question: I am rather excited for J.J. Abrams'
Fringe and Joss Whedon's
Dollhouse this fall on Fox, but now I read that
Battlestar Galactica's Ronald D. Moore is developing
Virtuality, a back-door pilot for Fox based on an idea from Lloyd Braun, one of the instigators of
Lost. I'm amazed at the pedigree of talent Fox is attracting right now from the sci-fi genre. Abrams, Whedon and Moore must be among the most prestigious names in modern science-fiction television. I remember you
writing a while back that Fox seems to be looking for a sci-fi/fantasy hit to fill the void
The X-Files left. Might this be an example of throwing various things at the wall and seeing what sticks? Hopefully, the least this forebodes is a solid night of sci-fi on network television in the near future.
— Brendan B.
Matt Roush: It all sounds very tempting, doesn't it? We just have to hope Fox stands behind these shows — if they live up to their potential — and gives them time and decent time periods to grow. Fox's recent track record isn't very promising in that regard, but the new regime (including Kevin Reilly, who gave NBC Heroes before he was dumped) obviously is pouring a lot of money into the fantasy genre in hopes of landing a winner or two or three. Everyone just needs to remember that it took a while for The X-Files to catch on. The scary part here is that expectations will be very high for these shows, not just at the network but in media and online coverage, precisely because of the creators' pedigrees. They may not be allowed to grow on us slowly, the way The X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and even the new Battlestar did.
