Televisionary Exclusive: "Virtuality" Writer Michael Taylor Responds to Kevin Reilly's TCA Comments

At yesterday's Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour press Q&A, Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly didn't directly mention drama pilot Virtuality, from Battlestar Galactica's Ronald D. Moore and Michael Taylor, by name but he did speak about the network's commitment to airing programs that are "bold" with a "point of view."

By its very definition, Virtuality, about the crew of interstellar vessel Phaeton who find escape from their mundane existence in virtual reality (where they are seemingly attacked by a glitch in the system), would seem to perfectly fit that description.

The two-hour pilot, directed by Peter Berg (Friday Night Lights) and produced by Universal Media Studios, stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, James D'Arcy, Sienna Guillory, Clea DuVall, Kerry Bishe, Joy Bryant, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Erik Jensen, Gene Farber, Omar Metwally, Jimmi Simpson, and Richie Coster.

After the press Q&A, James Hibberd of Hollywood Reporter's The Live Feed (along with several other reporters "in the huddle") asked Reilly for an update on the project. According to Hibberd, "Ron Moore's Virtuality pilot is being recut, possibly from two hours to one" and he quoted Reilly as saying, "It could air as-is and a certain segment of the audience would flip for it. But it's a little dense."

I contacted Virtuality co-writer Michael Taylor to confirm whether or not the pilot was in fact being recut and he confirmed that, yes, director Peter Berg is working on a one-hour version of the pilot for FOX executives to take a look at.

Additionally, he gave me the following exclusive statement about the status of Virtuality and responded to Reilly's comments about the "dense" quality of the produced pilot:

"Ron and I think the show is great as is. A lot of people definitely would dig it, and not just the Battlestar audience; this could have an even wider appeal, and as a network show it should. And we've also already cut it down quite a bit from its original two-hour run time to satisfy network concerns about pace and to prune some storylines.

But at the same time, Reilly's right about it being a little dense. It's dense in the same way Battlestar was/is, in that it introduces a bunch of complex, intriguing characters, along with a compelling sci-fi scenario with several layers to it. In other words, it's dense in the way good science fiction often is. The pilot puts a bunch of balls in the air but I think it does a great job of juggling those balls and setting up the scenario up in a way that makes it easy for the audience to understand without having to be hit over the heads with a lot of heavy-handed exposition. That said, it's definitely challenging material, the kind of story you need and want to pay attention to, especially in the pilot. But to us that's what made it so much fun to create, and what will ultimately pay off in series, by allowing us to tell exciting layered stories in the mold of shows like Lost (and Battlestar, of course).

Pete Berg is confident he can recut the show into a one-hour format, and he certainly has the chops to do it, as well as the experience (Friday Night Lights) of creating network shows that are both emotionally compelling and accessible. So Ron and I are taking a hands-off approach and letting him do his thing. Hopefully, Kevin Reilly and the other execs at Fox will like what he comes up with and we can look forward to seeing this show on the air."

I'm curious to know what you all think: Is this a further sign that complex, character-driven serialized storytelling is on the wane at the broadcast networks?

Stay tuned.