Straczynski denies Babylon 5 rumours

Babylon 5{jcomments on}J. Michael Straczynski has denied rumours that he is in talks over further Babylon 5 projects.

The hope of many a Babylon 5 fan were raised earlier this week when actor Walter Koenig claimed that the series creator, Straczynski, was in talks with Warner Brothers to re-acquire the rights to his creation. Koenig suggested that a new Babylon 5 project was in development; possibly a feature-length movie. Koenig played PSI Cop Bester, a recurring character, in Babylon 5 appearing in all five seasons.

However, Straczynski has posted on Twitter to debunk the press stories stating ‘Walter misspoke; I am not in negotiations with WB to develop more Babylon 5’ Which is a great shame because Babylon 5 was one of the best sci-fi shows ever with its complex story-arcs and multi-layered characterisation it set the way for more recent sci-fi shows such as the re-imaged Battlestar Galactica.

Since Babylon 5 ended in 1997 there has been several television movies, a short-lived spin-off (Crusade), a pilot for a spin-off that never happened (Legend of the Rangers) and a straight-to-dvd film The Lost Tales: Voices in the Dark which was meant to pave the way for further DVDs but sadly it turned out to be the only one. The deaths of actors Jeff Conaway, Richard Biggs and Andreas Katsulas in the years since the show’s finale makes it seem to some fans that future B5 projects are unlikely.