Syfy Orders Pilot Based on Terry Gilliam’s ’12 Monkeys’

Don’t panic, it’s not another Wizard Of Oz hybrid; it’s a little stranger – but seemingly much more palatable – premise based on the 1995 sci-fi film 12 Monkeys, which itself was inspired by a 1962 French film. 12 Monkeys starred Bruce Willis, Brad Pitt, Madeline Stowe and was directed by Monty Python alum Terry Gilliam.

If you need a refresher or have never seen the film, here’s a quick recap.
12-monkeys_jpg

In 2035, convict James Cole (Bruce Willis) is a reluctant passenger sent back in time by scientists to pinpoint a deadly virus’ origin that decimated Earth’s population decades earlier. But instead of 1996, an error sends Cole back to 1990, where he’s arrested and thrown in a mental hospital. Once his path crosses with the hospital’s psychiatrist (Madeleine Stowe) and the son (Brad Pitt) of a famous virus expert (Christopher Plummer), all bets are off.
screenshot-lrg-26
Need a trailer? No problem!

So what’s the deal? Well, Deadline reports that Syfy has ordered a “cast-contingent” pilot with story by Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett (“Terra Nova”) and produced by Universal Cable Productions and Atlas Entertainment (which makes sense as Universal Pictures/Atlas made the 1995 film in the first place) and the plan is to start shooting in November.
12monk720_02

I am GENUINELY curious to see who they’ll cast as Jeffrey, not only for the massive yet appropriate use of the middle finger but this is the role that garnered Brad Pitt several nominations (including one from a dude named Oscar) and a couple of big wins (Golden Globe, Saturn Award). The guy’s gotta be great – like Giancarlo Esposito (“Breaking Bad”) great.

Admittedly I was a little nervous at the thought of this film being scaled down for TV, but seeing as Syfy has a pretty decent track record when it comes to their original series, I’m reserving judgment until I see the pilot sometime next year.
So what do YOU make of all this? Sound off in the comments below!P.S we apologize for the lack of posting over the last week!

via Geeknation