The epic new drama series Flash Forward, from the US, premieres tonight on Five in the UK at 9pm and is certainly one to watch.
So what’s the lowdown?
A mysterious global event causes everyone to blackout simultaneously for two minutes and seventeen seconds exactly. In that time, everyone glimpses their life six months from now. When they wake up, everyone is left reeling, wondering if what they saw will actually happen…
Scary stuff. Were their futures not very bright then?
Some of what they see is not pretty it has to be said, with adultery, alcoholism and murder all featuring among the premonitions. But don’t worry, FBI agent Mark Benford, played by Joseph Fiennes, and his partner Demetri Noh, (American Pie and Star Trek's John Cho) are determined to get to the bottom of the mystery.
Sounds like a star-studded cast?
It is. Aside from Joseph and John, there’s also This Life and Coupling actor Jack Davenport, Lost’s Dominic Monaghan and Law & Order’s Courtney B Vance.
So it’s big deal Stateside then?
Ratings for ABC’s premiere of "FlashForward" were very strong last Thursday, with an average total audience of 12.47 million viewers, and the pilot went down a storm with the press with some claiming it’s bigger and better than both Lost and Heroes put together.
What are the long term plans for the series?
Producers say that at the very least they need at least three seasons to tell the complete story:
"We know what the ultimate season is and the penultimate season is. For in between, we know the various seasons but we are treating it like an accordion. In success, [the show] can go seven years. In less success, it would need to go three years to work. The end game of the show, to be properly done, really requires two full seasons focusing on the end game."
And here’s what co-creator and executive producer David Goyer said:
"We pitched [ABC] a fairly excessive plan… I mean, we know exactly the shot that season one ends on! They obviously said this resembles Lost, in that it’s a really cool script, but [they asked], ‘Do you have any idea where it goes?’ We said, ‘Yeah we know how the whole season ends and how the whole series ends’, and they went, ‘Holy shit!’"
Catch the first episode tonight then on Five, and here's a glimpse below:
