ARK LIFE

STARGATE GODFATHERS DEAN DEVLIN AND JONATHAN GLASSNER TEAM UP FOR THE ORIGINAL SYFY SERIES THE ARK

- TARA BENNETT

FOR EVERY CREATIVE PROJECT that finally finds its way to screens, there’s almost always a story about its making that would blow the audience’s minds. Take the case of new sci-fi series The Ark, whose creators – Dean Devlin and Jonathan Glassner – were for years technically persona non grata to one another because of Stargate.

If you aren’t aware, Devlin co-created the whole Stargate universe with Roland Emmerich in 1994 for their Stargate movie starring Kurt Russell and James Spader. In 1997, Showtime had Brad Wright and Glassner create a spin-off series, Stargate SG-1, that continued the film’s mythology without the involvement of the film’s cast, or Devlin and Emmerich. It went on to be a global hit lasting 10 seasons and spawning two direct-to-video films, and that never sat well with Devlin.

“I was very resentful about that,” Devlin tells SFX. “So for many years, I had separated myself from the Stargate TV series. But at some point, someone who I trust turned to me and said, ‘You know, they must be doing something right if the show has gone on this many years.’ And I had to admit that that was true.”

Seeking to bridge that creative impasse, Devlin reached out to Glassner to have lunch together and from that a new partnership was forged. “We got together and it was really a love fest,” Devlin enthuses. “He could not be more of a kindred spirit when it comes to how shows should be made and the content we wanted to say and what we did. And so that started us working together on The Outpost.”