Ronald D. Moore, creator of Battlestar Galactica, has just landed a two-year contract with Universal Media Studios.  The seven-figure deal enables him to continue on Battlestar, which will wrap its run on Sci Fi Channel next year and simultaneously begin developing projects for the studio, including a possible new television series for 2008.

On top of this, Moore will continue with his film projects, which includes the sequel to I, Robot for 20th Century Fox and a new take on horror classic The Thing for Universal.

According to Universal Media Studios president Katherine Pope, getting Moore-created series has been one of her top priorities upon taking over the company in June.

"Even when I was talking to Ben [Silverman] about taking this job, this was one of the deals we were already discussing," Pope said.  "Ron is one of those people who comes along very, very rarely, who knows how to create shows that are form-breakers."

"To me, Battlestar Galactica is an operatic political soap opera before it's sci-fi," she added.  "It's rooted in character and grounded in political and social worlds.  I don't think of it as a genre show."

Moore, who is popularly noted for his science fiction projects, including Star Trek and Roswell, is positively open to expanding beyond what he is best known for.

"As a writer, you want to stretch different muscles," Moore said. "I want to push myself to do different things."

Among the many genres, comedy has caught the attention of the Battlestar creator and although he is already in the early stages of exploring the idea, he's remains open to the sci-fi, as well as the possibility of adapting another classic material.

"It sort of depends on what it is," Moore said.  "My first instinct is to do something new and of my own [creation].  But I'm not averse to doing a new spin on something else.  I will be as curious as you to see what my next project is."


-Kris De Leon, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Variety
(Image courtesy of SciFi)