Amazon In Talks For A ‘Mass Effect’ TV Series Adaptation
Amazon are apparently in talks for another big sci-fi property, as reports reveal that they are close to nailing down a deal to develop the hugely popular ‘Mass Effect’ video game into a tv series.
According to Deadline, Amazon are keen to lean into “genre” tv shows following the success of series such as comic book adaptation ‘The Boys’, the fantasy series ‘Carnival Row’, sci-fi ‘The Expanse’, and the recently launched adaptation of ‘The Wheel Of Time’, not to mention the hotly anticipated ‘Lord Of The Rings’ series. They have now sat down with Electronic Arts to work out a deal to bring the megahit video game series ‘Mass Effect’ to screen.
For the non-gamers amongst you, ‘Mass Effect’ is set in a future where interstellar travel is possible through the use of mass transit devices called Mass Relays, a technology believed to have been built by an extinct alien race known as the Protheans. Large sections of the galaxy are overseen by the “Citadel Council”, a collection of races from across the galactic community who maintain law and order, of which the human race is now the newest member.
The main story follows Commander Shepard, a human graduate of the Systems Alliance special forces program, who is sent to investigate the human colony of Eden Prime to recover an unearthed Prothean beacon. When Shepard reaches the planet, he discovers it has been attacked by the “Geth”, a sentient AI bio-mechanical race, who also appear to have an interest in the beacon. Shepard does manage to reach the beacon and activates it, only to receive a vision that is filled with death and destruction. That vision seems to point to the return of “The Reapers”, a highly advanced machine race of synthetic-organic starships believed to eradicate organic civilizations every 50,000 years…
The ‘Mass Effect’ game first launched in 2007, with sequels released in 2010 and 2012. The trilogy has sold well over 14 million copies worldwide and picked up armfuls of awards over its lifetime, along with receiving universal critical acclaim. It also spawned a number of mobile game spin-offs, and the full-game sequel ‘Mass Effect: Andromeda’, which moved the action to a new galaxy.
‘Mass Effect’ would seem like a solid pick up for Amazon, and could help fill the gap left by ‘The Expanse’, which is due to end with the upcoming sixth season. Other sci-fi shows they have in the works at the moment include an adaptation of William Gibson’s ‘The Peripheral’ from ‘Westworld’ creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy; An adaption of the video game ‘Fallout’, also from Nolan and Joy; ‘Lightyears’ starring Sissy Spacek and J. K. Simmons; And ‘Paper Girls’, an adaptation of the Brian K. Vaughan comic book. There is also the untitled spin-off from ‘The Boys’, which is set in America’s only college exclusively for young-adult “superheroes.”
Amazon is currently “in talks” for the ‘Mass Effect’ tv series, so it may still all fall apart, but we’ll let you know should they confirm it is moving forward.
