The long, twilight struggle for a Babylon 5 reboot could be finally coming to an end. The Hollywood Reporter reports that a "from-the-ground-up reboot" of the 90s cult favorite sci-fi classic is in development for The CW with original creator Joe Michael Straczynski as writer and executive producer.
The new version will reportedly revolve around series protagonist John Sheridan as he takes command of Babylon 5 — a diplomatic station built in the wake of a devastating war with an advanced alien race. Notably, the concept doesn't appear to include original protagonist Jeffrey Sinclair, who exited the series as a regular after the first season but continue to have a role in the story.
Babylon 5 originally aired from 1993 to 1998, earning several awards along the way, including a Hugo. It was notable for its ambitious five-year story arc — a rarity in an era where syndicated television prized standalone episodes. Straczynski, affectionately known as JMS by his fans, was also something of an online trailblazer, interacting with fans through newsgroups and other early internet forums. The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5 remains a fascinating early internet time capsule in that respect.
JMS has since moved on to various other projects, working on comics, an aborted World War Z script, and Sense8. The last major Babylon 5 project was the direct-to-DVD Lost Tales, which received mixed to poor reviews from critics.
While beloved in its day, Babylon 5 has been overshadowed in recent years by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, which enjoyed bigger budgets and better production values than its competitor. Babylon 5 has likewise been hampered by its computer-generated special effects — once revolutionary, but now rather poor on high-definition televisions due to various mastering issues. All of these elements have had fans crying out for a reboot for many years now, which finally seems to be coming to fruition at The CW.
Stracynski is currently working on the reboot alongside Warner Bros., which helped produce the original Babylon 5, and will help pen the script. In the meantime, you can catch a remastered version of the original show on HBO Max, which cleans up the original special effects at the expense of returning to the original 4:3 aspect ratio.
Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN.