Apple snags Isaac Asimov’s Foundation sci-fi novel trilogy for a TV series

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

After battling it out with a number of other studios for the rights to iconic science-fiction author Isaac Asimov's FOUNDATION, Apple has announced that they'll be adapting the novel trilogy into a TV series, courtesy of Skydance Television. According to reports, David Goyer (MAN OF STEEL, KRYPTON, GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE) and Josh Friedman (SNOW PIERCER, THE BLACK DAHLIA, CHAIN REACTION) will executive produce the show that has recently been placed into development with consideration for a straight-to-series order. Goyer & Friedman will also serve as showrunners on the new project, with Skydance’s David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Marcy Ross also on-board to executive produce.

When Asimov's FOUNDATION was published in 1942, it arrived as a short story published in Astounding Magazine. Said to have influenced George Lucas when dreaming up his Star Wars universe, FOUNDATION tells a complex saga of humans scattered on planets throughout the galaxy, all living under the rule of the Galactic Empire. The protagonist is a psycho-historian who has an ability to read the future and foresees the empire’s imminent collapse. He sets out to save the knowledge of mankind from being wiped out. Or, you know, just another day at the office.

In the past, several attempts have been made by Fox, Sony, and Warner Bros. to adapt Asimov's sprawling trilogy into a major motion picture, including a failed effort by THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW helmer Roland Emmerich. One of the major reasons that Asimov's FOUNDATION has experienced so much trouble getting up off the ground is that writers have found the material to be intimidatingly dense. For real, Asimov's warring faction count in the series makes GAME OF THRONES look like mere child's play by comparison.

Should the FOUNDATION project be given a series order, it will join an already-impressive list of projects that are currently in development from Apple, including: a morning show drama executive produced by and starring Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, the re-imagining of Steven Spielberg's AMAZING STORIES anthology, Ronald D. Moore's space race drama, a series from Damien Chazelle, a comedic endeavor starring Kristen Wiig, a massive world-building drama called SEE from Steven DeKnight and Francis Lawrence, in addition to the planned psychological drama from THE SIXTH SENSE and SPLIT creative M. Night Shyamalan.

Have you read Asimov's FOUNDATION, or one of his many other novels? I recall owning one or two of them in the past, though I'm not entirely sure that I got around to reading them. With that being said, I do clearly recall the sheer volume of titles that I would always see when visiting my local book store, while on the hunt for the latest Clive Barker or Stephen King novel. If you're familiar with his work, let us know what you think of it using the comments section below.

No release or production dates have been set for Apple's adaptation of Isaac Asimov's FOUNDATION.