Like it or not, it’s reported that Sci Fi plans to officially change its name to “Syfy” upon the premiere of one of its new shows, Warehouse 13. I caught a look at the script for Warehouse 13 earlier this year and I liked what I read. As it turns out, that script was written by — you guessed it — Jane Espenson.
KM: Will the actual pilot of WH 13 differ much from the script? I guess that might be hard to tell without knowing what version I saw, but perhaps not.
JE: There were four different scripts for WH 13, each with different authors and very different tones. The final script differs a lot from the three that went before it. So there’s a three in four chance that what you saw was NOT the same as what will be in the aired pilot. It was a process of finding the right tone and content for the show.
KM: Is your lack of involvement in writing more for WH 13 due to commitments elsewhere or something else?
JE: My involvement on WH 13 was always intended to be limited to the pilot. My total love for the BSG universe keeps me happily tied to Caprica anyway.
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Some of you may also recognize that Ms. Espenson had a hand in many episodes of Dollhouse, a clear sign that Joss Whedon is secretly in love with her. Oh, who am I kidding — he doesn’t hide it one bit. And who can blame him? She’s nothing but cordial and I’ve never heard a bad word breathed about her. Sadly, though, it’s unlikely we’ll see more of her there.
KM: Will you be writing more for Dollhouse next season (and, if so, congrats on the renewal)? With the talk of cost cutting needing to be done for the show, could you see it heading more in the direction of following along with the Echo character much more than, say, spreading out to the other dolls like it seemed things were heading?
JE: I LOVED being involved with Dollhouse, but I was only able to fit it into the narrow window between the end of BSG and the start of Caprica. It was so much fun to work with Joss again and to write the sorts of jokes that didn’t fit on BSG — oh, and pop culture references! Delightful! But I won’t be able to do more there because Caprica is a full-time job and then some. I wish I had a time-expander because I can think of nothing better than to work for Ron AND Joss. Since I’m not there anymore, I have no idea what the plans are for season two other than that I know Joss is already working hard on it.
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We mentioned this one once already, but it bears repeating here again: what of the rumored Buffy remake, sans-Joss? I asked her the day it was reported….
KM: Have you heard of the reported Buffy reboot and have you been approached about it at all? Would you even be interested in helping with it? What do you think of the idea?
JE: I saw the news about this first thing this morning and I was surprised. I don’t think any Buffy project would work without Joss’s involvement.
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Finally, a question I’d been wondering about myself. Funny the picked one that I had on my list, though not sure I’d have put it at the top.
KM: What other classic sci-fi shows could you see making as successful a re-imagining as BSG has?
JE: Alien Nation. I loved that movie/series and I think it needs to be remade as a real exploration of subculture. It had a lot to say about weighing the values of assimilation vs. pride that I think could be really powerful. I love the idea of using non-humans to talk about the values of humanism.
Clacked by Keith McDuffee 
on Jun 04, 2009 @ 12:45 EST5EDT
The idea of just writing the story and later on being corrected by Joss is something that I’d never expected but sounds brilliant. Great Interview, thanks a ton.
I’m all for an Alien Nation redo! :)