The Dresden Files | |
---|---|
Genre | |
Based on | The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher |
Developed by | |
Starring | |
Country of origin |
|
No. of seasons | 1 |
No. of episodes | 12 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
|
Producers |
|
Running time | 45 minutes |
Production companies |
|
Original release | |
Network | Space, Sci Fi Channel |
Release | January 21 – April 15, 2007 |
The Dresden Files is a dark fantasy television series based on the fantasy book series of the same name by Jim Butcher. The series follows private investigator and wizard Harry Dresden as portrayed by Paul Blackthorne, and recounts investigations into supernatural disturbances in modern-day Chicago. It premiered on January 21, 2007, on Sci Fi Channel in the United States and on Space in Canada. It was picked up by Sky One in the UK and began airing on February 14 the same year.
The series ran for a single season of 12 episodes, and has since been released on DVD. After the show ended on April 15, Sci Fi Channel revealed on August 3 that The Dresden Files was canceled and the second season was not picked up. [1]
Casting was confirmed in November 2005 by Robert Hewitt Wolfe: [2]
No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | US viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Birds of a Feather" | Michael Robison | Peter Egan | January 21, 2007 | 103 | 1.732 [3] |
Believing monsters are after him, a young boy searches out the help of the only wizard listed in the Chicago Yellow Pages - Harry Dresden. | ||||||
2 | "The Boone Identity" | James A. Contner | George Mastras | January 28, 2007 | 104 | 1.891 [4] |
The ghost of a murdered girl can't rest until justice is brought to her killer, who is already dead. | ||||||
3 | "Hair of the Dog" | Michael Nankin | Laurence Walsh | February 11, 2007 | 105 | 1.17 [5] |
Lt. Murphy requests Dresden's help in solving a series of bizarre murder cases. He discovers werewolves are involved - they're the victims. Loose adaptation of book #2 of The Dresden Files , Fool Moon . [6] | ||||||
4 | "Rules of Engagement" | Michael Grossman | Curtis Kheel | February 18, 2007 | 102 | 1.41 [7] |
As Harry attempts to save the latest damsel in distress from a vicious Hellion, he finds they share a surprising connection. | ||||||
5 | "Bad Blood" | Rick Rosenthal | Jack Bernstein | February 25, 2007 | 107 | 1.12 [8] |
Bianca (guest star Joanne Kelly), the most beautiful—and most dangerous—vampire in Chicago hires Dresden. Someone is trying to kill her, and she needs Dresden to find out who and why. | ||||||
6 | "Soul Beneficiary" | Ken Girotti | Peter Egan | March 4, 2007 | 108 | 0.94 [9] |
When a man who has been having premonitions that he's about to die drops dead in Dresden's office, Harry is plunged into a bizarre murder plot that ends up revealing a dark secret from Bob's past. | ||||||
7 | "Walls" | John Fawcett | Hans Beimler & Robert Hewitt Wolfe | March 11, 2007 | 106 | 1.17 [10] |
Harry investigates a group of thieving college students who have discovered a supernatural method to bypass the most sophisticated of security systems. But there's madness in their method, because it is slowly killing them off, one by one. | ||||||
8 | "Storm Front" | David Carson | Hans Beimler & Robert Hewitt Wolfe | March 18, 2007 | 101 | 1.35 [11] |
A grisly crime scene leads Harry to the middle of a gang war, and a nasty reminder of the perils of black magic. This was edited down from the pilot episode and loosely adapts the plot of the first novel, Storm Front . | ||||||
9 | "The Other Dick" | James Head | George Mastras | March 25, 2007 | 110 | 1.00 [12] |
While taking classes to get his P.I. license, Harry finds his teacher - another local private investigator - murdered using supernatural means. Harry reluctantly joins forces with the deceased teacher's assistant (guest star Claudia Black) to find the killer. | ||||||
10 | "What About Bob?" | David Straiton | David Simkins | April 1, 2007 | 109 | N/A |
Harry's latest lover sneaks out of his place with Bob's skull and delivers it to Dresden's uncle Justin Morningway – who died by Dresden's own hand five years ago. Dresden learns that death isn't all it's cracked up to be – especially where his uncle is concerned. | ||||||
11 | "Things That Go Bump" | Michael Grossman | Robert Hewitt Wolfe | April 8, 2007 | 111 | N/A |
Ancient Mai and Morgan seek refuge at Dresden's place after they are ambushed by one of Mai's enemies. But once inside, they discover that they're now all trapped by a powerful spell, and the walls are closing in. | ||||||
12 | "Second City" | Nick Copus | Barry M. Schkolnick | April 15, 2007 | 112 | N/A |
Minutes after leaving a store, a former gang member is found dead under mysterious circumstances. Meanwhile, Murphy's father comes to Chicago, and he has a bone to pick with her – named Harry Dresden. |
In 2005, the SciFi Channel optioned The Dresden Files as a two-hour film and backdoor pilot. Nicolas Cage executive produced alongside Hans Beimler, Robert Hewitt Wolfe, Norm Golightly, and Morgan Gendel. It was produced by Lionsgate Television in association with Cage's Saturn Films. [13] Production began during the Autumn of 2005. Originally, a Summer 2006 release was anticipated, but was delayed to January 2007. [14]
The pilot film was made from a screenplay by television writers Hans Beimler and Robert Hewitt Wolfe, and based on Butcher's novel Storm Front . David Carson directed and shooting took place in Toronto. Paul Blackthorne was cast in the lead role in November 2005. [15] A two-hour pilot was originally intended to serve as the premiere, but certain last minute developmental and casting changes delayed its completion. Episode three (in production order) was aired in its place. Along with the re-shooting of several scenes, the pilot had been cut to an hour and was the eighth episode to air. A third version of the pilot, now movie length, was broadcast late at night on March 7, 2008 by SciFi Channel. Besides restoring cut scenes from the original version of the pilot, it incorporated footage from throughout the season, placing it outside of the main series' continuity. [16]
Most notable in the re-edited version of the pilot was the fact that Bob, played by Terrance Mann in the series as a full apparition, was limited to only a disembodied voice who was centered around the familiar rune covered skull with animated lighting to symbolize the spirit within, more akin to the Bob of the novels. This re-editing was done later in the series as Mann did not join the series until after the original filming of the pilot had already been concluded. The full pilot version of "Storm Front" was not included in the original DVD release of the complete series.
In a forum post Jim Butcher said that "the show is not the books. It is not meant to follow the same story. It is meant as an alternate world, where the overall background and story-world is similar, but not all the same things happen. The show is not attempting to recreate the books on a chapter-by-chapter or even story-by-story basis". He continued by saying viewers should not expect a duplicate of the books, and those expecting it would be disappointed. [17]
In August 2007, The Dresden Files was released by Lions Gate Entertainment onto DVD. [18]
In the 2008 film The Eye , Jessica Alba's character is watching television after her sight is restored. An episode of The Dresden Files appears briefly on the television. [19] This appears to be a cross-promotion between Lionsgate Television and Lions Gate Entertainment (the distributor of The Eye).
Andromeda is a space opera television series, based on unused material by Gene Roddenberry, developed by Robert Hewitt Wolfe, and produced by Roddenberry's widow, Majel Barrett. The series follows Kevin Sorbo as Captain Dylan Hunt of the Systems Commonwealth, an intergalactic government that presided over an extended period of peace and prosperity until its destruction from a rebellion led by the warmongering Nietzcheans and parasitic Magog. The series premiered on October 2, 2000, and ended on May 13, 2005.
British science fiction television series Doctor Who debuted on North American television in January 1965 on CBC. It appeared in syndication in the United States beginning in 1972. This article explores the connections of that series to distribution, broadcast and fandom in Canada and the United States.
Robert Hewitt Wolfe is an American television producer and screenwriter. He is best known for his work as a writer on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and for developing and producing the series Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda.
Paul Blackthorne is an English actor. Although born in Shropshire, he spent his early childhood on UK military bases in Britain and Germany.
Eureka is an American science fiction television series that premiered on Sci-Fi Channel on July 18, 2006. The fifth and final season ended on July 16, 2012. The show is set in the fictional town of Eureka, Southern Oregon. Most residents of Eureka are scientific geniuses who work for Global Dynamics – an advanced research facility responsible for the development of nearly all major technological breakthroughs since its inception. Each episode featured a mysterious accidental or intentional misuse of technology, which the town sheriff, Jack Carter, dealt with, with the help of the town scientists. Each season also featured a larger story arc that concerned a particular major event or item.
Battlestar Galactica is an American military science fiction television series, and part of the Battlestar Galactica franchise. The show was developed by Ronald D. Moore and executive produced by Moore and David Eick as a re-imagining of the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series created by Glen A. Larson. The pilot for the series first aired as a three-hour miniseries in December 2003 on the Sci-Fi Channel, which was then followed by four regular seasons, ending its run on March 20, 2009. The cast includes Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, Tricia Helfer, and Grace Park.
Caprica is a 2010 American science fiction drama television series, which is a prequel spin-off of the 2004–2009 series Battlestar Galactica. Caprica is set 58 years before the main series, and shows how humanity first created the Cylon androids who would later turn against their human masters. Among Caprica's main characters are the father and uncle of William Adama, the man who becomes the senior surviving military leader of the fleet which represents the remnants of the Twelve Colonies in Battlestar Galactica.
Jim Butcher is an American author. He has written the contemporary fantasy The Dresden Files, Codex Alera, and Cinder Spires book series.
Storm Front is a 2000 fantasy novel by American writer Jim Butcher. It is the first novel in The Dresden Files, his first published series, and it follows the character of Harry Dresden, professional wizard. The novel was later adapted into a pilot for a SyFy channel television series, though Jim Butcher felt the writers were not attempting to recreate the novel on a "chapter by chapter or even story by story basis".
Cavemen is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 2 to November 20, 2007. The show was developed by Joe Lawson, Josh Gordon and Will Speck, based on the GEICO Cavemen TV commercials, which were also written by Lawson. It was described by the network as a "unique buddy comedy that offers a clever twist on stereotypes and turns race relations on its head", and is set in San Diego, California. However, the show earned an extremely negative reception, becoming regarded as one of the worst television shows of all time.
The fifth season of Monk originally aired in the United States on USA Network from July 7, 2006, to March 2, 2007. It consisted of 16 episodes. Tony Shalhoub, Traylor Howard, Ted Levine, and Jason Gray-Stanford reprised their roles as the main characters. A DVD of the season was released on June 26, 2007.
The Dresden Files is a series of contemporary fantasy/mystery novels written by American author Jim Butcher. The first novel, Storm Front—which was also Butcher's writing debut—was published in 2000 by Roc Books.
Besides the novels of The Dresden Files, author Jim Butcher has written several shorter works appearing in the same universe. Most are told from the point of view of Harry Dresden, as are the novels, but some take the point of view of other characters.
The Ark is an American science fiction television series created by Dean Devlin, with Devlin and Jonathan Glassner serving as showrunners for the series. It premiered on Syfy on February 1, 2023, with the first season consisting of twelve episodes. The series stars Christie Burke as Lt. Sharon Garnet who becomes the de facto captain of an interstellar spacecraft after a disaster. It also stars Reece Ritchie, Richard Fleeshman, Stacey Michelle Read, Ryan Adams, Pavle Jerinić, Shalini Peiris, Christina Wolfe, and Tiana Upcheva. In April 2023, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on July 17, 2024.
Peace Talks is a novel in The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. It is the 16th novel in the series. It follows the protagonist, Harry Dresden as he attempts to navigate a convoluted peace negotiation between various supernatural powers.
Battle Ground is a novel by Jim Butcher and is the 17th novel in The Dresden Files. Battle Ground was published on September 29, 2020 by Little, Brown Book Group. In it Harry Dresden, the protagonist, attempts to stop the Titan Ethniu from destroying Chicago.