We interview Farscape creator Rockne S. O’Bannon and star Ben Browder in celebration of the show’s 25th anniversary.
25 years ago The Sci-Fi channel (SyFy these days) brought onto the airwaves a series unlike any ever seen before. Farscape took the idea of weird and ran with it in a universe filled with the bizarre, the beautiful, and both at the same time.
Created by Rockne S. O’Bannon, the man behind Alien Nation, Farscape introduced viewers to creatures and aliens of all different shapes and sizes. Some of them were people and others were beyond anything we could imagine. And we all saw it and experienced it alongside lost astronaut and scientist John Crichton, played by Ben Browder. Crichton was the only ACTUAL human around and was the perfect stand in for the rest of us.
The series would be brought to life by the Jim Henson Creature Shop under the eye of Brian Henson (who we interviewed yesterday). The shop would create and design various aliens that were both puppet and person…and a bit of both. Over 4 seasons and a miniseries, Crichton and company would change the universe they were in as well as our own.
Farscape became a fan favorite and would grow a fanbase that would be ravenous for the show. They’d bring it back from the dead a couple of times over its run when cancellation was in the cards. This love for the series came from seeing a crew that would accept pretty much anyone, no matter how odd they might seem. Family didn’t mean you had to look alike and even those with a past of mistakes could find some forgiveness. It was an amazing message brought to the screen that played out in a world that was just as amazing.
I was lucky enough to chat with three of the cornerstones of the Farscape universe. Actor Ben Browder (John Crichton), creator/exec producer Rockne S O’Bannon, and creature maker/exec producer Brian Henson to look back 25 years later on Farscape’s past and a possible future as well as how the show changed the game for science fiction on TV.
In celebration of the anniversary, Shout! TV will be introducing new commercial break interstitials to Farscape TV, including trivia, production memories, and more featuring Ben Browder and Gigi Edgley. Farscape is available to stream at Farscape.TV and through the Shout! TV app.
