Legendary producer and director Steven Spielberg will soon be able to add another television credit to his impressive canon of work. Spielberg will be producing another drama series, called "Extant," for CBS' summer 2014 lineup. "Extant" marks the third show that Spielberg will have on the air next summer, joining CBS' "Under the Dome" and TNT's "Falling Skies."
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the CBS network gave a straight-to-series order to Spielberg for "Extant," which will be produced by Spielberg's Amblin Television in conjunction with CBS Television Studios. CBS ordered 13 episodes of the new series.
Spielberg, Mickey Fisher and Greg Walker penned the series' script, and will be executive producing the show as well. Brooklyn Weaver, Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey will also be producing alongside Spielberg, Walker and Fisher. Adam Rodin will assume the role of series co-producer. CBS Television Distribution will take care of the show's domestic distribution and CBS Studios will be in charge of securing its release on a worldwide scale.
"Extant" will see Spielberg doing what he does best: science fiction. According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Extant" is described as a thriller that takes place years in the future. The show will focus on a female astronaut who is trying to reconnect with her family after returning from a year spent in outer space. The experiences of the main character will lead to developments that will have a huge impact on life on earth.
CBS Entertainment President Nina Tassler said that "Extant" will be a novel viewing experience. "'Extant' is a very original concept with layers of humanity, mystery and surprise that reveal itself throughout the script," Tassler said. "Our partnership with Amblin for 'Under the Dome' showed that viewers respond to high-quality event programming in the summer. We look forward to building on that with 'Extant' and offering CBS audiences another high-concept, unique event for summer television."
The team producing "Extant" is the same production team behind this summer's hit scif-fi drama "Under the Dome." "Dome," a TV adaptation of Stephen King's bestselling novel, is produced by DreamWorks TV and CBS TVS. CBS has already renewed the hit series for a second season, despite its high production cost. Its high ratings proved that the cost was worthwhile, showing that viewers enjoy watching high-quality programming during the slow summer months that usually experience dips in ratings.
CBS Corp. CEO Leslie Moonves commented on the success of "Dome" at the Television Critic's Association summer press tour, saying it "changed the face of summer television." "It's the way television should be," Moonves said. "It's the way television can be."
CBS scored a content licensing deal with Amazon to give Amazon Prime members unlimited access to the drama four days after it aired, which helped offset the high price of the show's production costs.
"Extant" will help bolster CBS' efforts to have year-round scripted programs. In addition to upcoming series "Extant," "Dome" and "Unforgettable" are both propping up CBS' ratings during the summer. "Unforgettable," a drama starring Poppy Montgomery, was brought back after its cancellation for a short summer run. CBS is pushing for more quality programming after the network's reality shows failed to bring in desired ratings.
Thirteen-episode "Extant" will join CBS' other "limited series" shows, "Dome," "Hostages" and "Intelligence."