The Last of Us director Peter Hoar is teaming up with The Witcher producer Matthew Bouch to bring back beloved BBC sci-fi show Blake's 7.
The cult classic, which ran between 1978 and 1981, was essentially the UK's answer to Star Trek, as it followed a space-based crew of outlaws plotting rebellion against the totalitarian Terran Federation. Initially, it centered on the Liberator's righteous, reckless captain Roj Blake (Gareth Thomas), before Paul Darrow's computer expert Kerr Avon took over in seasons 3 and 4. It was created by Terry Nation, who's best known for inventing Doctor Who's Daleks.
"The Blake's 7 story is legendary because they were given the [British police show] Softly, Softly slot that was intended for police drama with a budget intended for one big set and a few location shoots," Hoar, whose credits also include Daredevil, Iron Fist, and Netflix's The Umbrella Academy told Deadline. "At the time it felt like it meant something. Those shows got into my veins. I could tell they didn't have money but I was able to compartmentalize and enjoy the ride knowing that the sets wobbled."
Jason Haigh-Ellery will be producing alongside Hoar and Bouch, while Multitude's Lizzie Worsdell will act as executive produce. According to the publication, Hoar will helm each episode and has plans to shop the reboot around in the very-near future.
"We're driven by our passions but also seeing that there is a gap in the market in the UK – particularly with the well-publicized dropping off of Doctor Who – for genre-based British IP," Bouch continued, referencing the news that Disney Plus will no longer play host to the time-hopping fave across the pond.
"We look back at when we were young with a degree of nostalgia but also thinking about the '70s and '80s as we were growing up and the amount of genre material that was available, whether it was Blake's 7 or the Narnia adaptation. We are looking to the international market and seeing if there is a way of dovetailing that British low-budget sensibility with international markets. We know in the US there's a big contraction and we all need to think about finding ways to make things more economical."
For more, check out our picks of the greatest sci-fi shows of all time.
