The Librarian | |
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Created by | David Titcher |
Original work | The Librarian: Quest for the Spear |
Owner | Electric Entertainment |
Print publications | |
Book(s) | The Adventures of the Librarian: Quest for the Spear (2004) |
Novel(s) | The Librarians and the Lost Lamp (2016) The Librarians and the Mother Goose Chase (2017) |
Comics | The Librarian (2006) The Librarians (2017) |
Films and television | |
Film(s) | See below |
Television series |
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Television film(s) | The Librarian: Quest for the Spear (2004) The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines (2006) The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice (2008) |
Audio | |
Soundtrack(s) | The Librarian: Return To King Solomon's Mine & Quest For The Spear (2007) The Librarian: Curse Of The Judas Chalice (2009) The Librarians (2015) |
The Librarian is a series of original fantasy-adventure made-for-television films from Turner Network Television (TNT) starring Noah Wyle as the Librarian, who protects a secret collection of artifacts.
Dean Devlin, through his production company Electric Entertainment, brought David Titcher's original pitch to TNT. David Titcher wrote and created the original movie that sequels were based on. [1] The director of the first film was Peter Winther, and writer/creator David Titcher co-produced with Marc Roskin and Kearie Peak. In 2004, they planned to produce three Librarian films with ER star Noah Wyle.
"Dean's pitch was a refreshing take on the hero story", TNT's Senior Vice President of Original Programming Michael Wright said. "Instead of a muscle-bound, spandex-clad superman, we get an insecure but brilliant guy who thinks he's taking a safe job as a librarian, but instead gets taken on a ride in a world we'd like to believe exists." [1]
Quest for the Spear introduces Flynn Carsen (Noah Wyle), who is hired by the Metropolitan Public Library as The Librarian. What Flynn does not realize is that the library has existed for centuries and protects a range of historical and often magical items in a secret section of the library, including The Ark of the Covenant, Pandora's box, and Excalibur. When part of the Spear of Destiny is stolen from the library, Flynn must recover it with the help of Nicole Noone.
Return to King Solomon's Mines begins with Flynn's attending a party at his mother's house, where he meets up with his "Uncle" Jerry, a close friend of his late father. Soon Flynn is on a quest to locate King Solomon's Mines, and along the way he teams up with Emily Davenport, an archaeologist who helps Flynn translate the Akon (aklo algolis) language. When they meet up with Jerry in Kenya, all is not what it seems.
Curse of the Judas Chalice finds Flynn experiencing a strange dream which leads him to New Orleans, where he finds himself in the way of a Russian conspiracy that involves the notorious vampire Prince Vlad Dracul. Once again, Flynn must overcome his fears and protect one of the world's most powerful and dangerous artifacts, the Judas Chalice, or face the consequences of it falling into the wrong hands.
TNT ordered a ten-episode weekly series version of The Librarian, following the original cast that includes Noah Wyle, Bob Newhart and Jane Curtin, as well as four new characters who work for The Library. A teaser trailer aired right after the Falling Skies season finale. The series premiered on December 7, 2014. [2]
The new characters are:
Jenkins (John Larroquette) serves as the quartet's reluctant, sometimes cantankerous caretaker; he has worked at The Library's branch office "for longer than anyone knows" and has extensive knowledge of ancient lore. The quartet battles the Serpent Brotherhood, a cult led by the mysterious immortal Dulaque, a recurring character played by Matt Frewer. [3]
The series was filmed in Portland, Oregon. On February 12, 2015, it was announced that the series had been renewed for a second ten-episode season. [4] It premiered on November 1, 2015. [5] In December 2015, it was announced that the series would be renewed for a third season. [6] On January 24, 2017, TNT renewed the series for a fourth season. [7] In March 2018, the series was cancelled. [8]
In May 2023, The CW ordered a spin-off series titled The Librarians: The Next Chapter, which is set to premiere in late 2024, airing on Thursdays right after Superman and Lois . [9]
On August 16, 2024 it was pulled from The CW lineup. [10] On August 23, 2024, it was announced that TNT had picked up the series after being pulled from The CW schedule. [11]
A novelization of the first movie was adapted by Christopher Tracy as The Adventures of the Librarian: Quest for the Spear, which was published in 2004. [12]
Three tie-in novels have been published, all written by Greg Cox:
Released in November 2006, Electric Entertainment and Atlantis Studios produced a graphic novel adaptation of Return to King Solomon's Mines. The adaption was written by James Watson and illustrated by Nate Pride.
Electric Entertainment and Atlantis Studios additionally signed an exclusive worldwide agreement to produce an original comic book series based on The Librarian characters. "Comics are great opportunities to explore mythology, history, and each character in a way we could never do on film," said Executive Producer Dean Devlin. "There are thousands of artifacts in the Library – each one a new adventure. Based on the response we’ve had from the first film, fans of all ages loved the characters and want to see more. This series will give it to them." [13]
On June 20, 2017, writer Will Pfeifer and artist Rodney Buchemi were announced as creators of a new comic book series from Dynamite Entertainment, based on The Librarians, set to launch on September 13. [14] The final issue was released December 13, 2017. [15]
In 2009 Producer Dean Devlin had indicated that the next entry in The Librarian series would be a theatrical release. Shooting was planned for some time in 2009. [16] However, actor Noah Wyle later said in an interview at the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con that shooting had not begun and there were no immediate plans for a theatrical release of the next film in the series. [17]
Character | Television films | Television series | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
The Librarian: Quest for the Spear | The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines | The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice | The Librarians | |
Year of Release | 2004 | 2006 | 2008 | 2014–2018 |
Flynn Carsen | Noah Wyle | |||
Charlene | Jane Curtin | |||
Judson | Bob Newhart | |||
Margie Carsen | Olympia Dukakis | |||
Debra Markham Porter | Lisa Brenner | |||
Edward Wilde | Kyle MacLachlan | |||
Nicole Noone | Sonya Walger | Rachel Nichols | ||
Lana | Kelly Hu | |||
"Uncle" Jerry | Robert Foxworth | |||
Emily Davenport | Gabrielle Anwar | |||
Jomo | Hakeem Kae-Kazim | |||
Gen. Samir | Erick Avari | |||
Professor Lazlo / Vlad | Bruce Davison | |||
Simone Renoir | Stana Katic | |||
Sergei Kubichek | Dikran Tulaine | |||
Ivan | Jason Douglas | |||
Katie | Beth Burvant | |||
Eve Baird | Rebecca Romijn | |||
Jacob Stone | Christian Kane | |||
Cassandra Cillian | Lindy Booth | |||
Ezekiel Jones | John Kim | |||
Jenkins | John Larroquette | |||
Dulaque | Matt Frewer | |||
Lamia | Lesley-Ann Brandt | |||
Moriarty | David S. Lee | |||
Prospero | Richard Cox |
The Librarians are the guardians of powerful and magical relics, having been for centuries, and often undertake globe-spanning adventures to recover items and store them in the Library. Some of the relics in the Library include: the original Mona Lisa , Excalibur, the Ark of the Covenant, the Fountain of Youth, the Nautilus , Noah's Ark, Pan's flute, Pandora's box, Poseidon's trident, and the Shroud of Turin. There are also living assets within the Library; for example, the Loch Ness Monster can be seen in the water around the "tree" made of walkways at the end of the Judas Chalice adventure.
Jonny Quest is a science fiction-adventure media franchise that revolves around the titular Jonny Quest, a boy who accompanies his scientist father on extraordinary adventures. The franchise started with a 1964–65 television series of the same name, and has come to include two subsequent television series, two television films, and three computer games.
Noah Strausser Speer Wyle is an American actor, producer, director, and writer. He currently plays lawyer Harry Wilson in Leverage: Redemption, a revival of Leverage (2008-2012). He is best known for his role as John Carter in the television series ER (1994–2009), which earned him nominations for three Golden Globe Awards and five Primetime Emmy Awards. He is also known for his roles as Flynn Carsen in The Librarian franchise and Tom Mason in the television series Falling Skies (2011–2015). He has appeared in films such as A Few Good Men (1992), Pirates of Silicon Valley (1999), Donnie Darko (2001), and W. (2008).
The Librarian may refer to:
John Bernard Larroquette is an American actor. He is known for his starring roles in the NBC military drama series Baa Baa Black Sheep (1976–1978), the NBC sitcom Night Court for which he received four consecutive Primetime Emmy Awards wins for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series during the earlier incarnation, the NBC sitcom The John Larroquette Show (1993–1996), the David E. Kelley legal drama series The Practice (1997–2002), the ABC legal comedy-drama series Boston Legal (2004–2008), and the TNT series The Librarians (2014–2018).
The Librarian: Quest for the Spear is a 2004 American made-for-television fantasy-adventure film and the first in the Librarian franchise of movies. It was originally released on American cable channel TNT on December 5, 2004, written by David Titcher, directed by Peter Winther and starring Noah Wyle.
John Rogers is an American screenwriter. He is known as the creator of the television series Jackie Chan Adventures (2000–2005), Leverage, The Librarians (2014–2018), and The Player (2015).
Lindy Booth is a Canadian actress. She played Riley Grant on the Disney Channel series The Famous Jett Jackson, Claudia on Relic Hunter, and A.J. Butterfield on the NBC series The Philanthropist. She then played Cassandra Cillian on the TNT series The Librarians (2014–2018).
Librarians in popular culture can be found across many different mediums, including film, television, music and literature. Their portrayal is varied and can represent or subvert various stereotypes. Libraries and librarians are recurring elements in fiction.
Sonya Walger is a British-American actress. She had starring roles in the short-lived sitcoms The Mind of the Married Man (2001–2002) and Coupling (2003) before landing her role as Penny Widmore in the ABC drama series Lost (2006–2010). Walger later starred on Tell Me You Love Me (2007), FlashForward (2009–2010), Common Law (2012), The Catch (2016–2017) and For All Mankind (2019–2022).
The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines is a 2006 American made-for-television fantasy-adventure film and the second in The Librarian franchise of movies starring Noah Wyle as a librarian who protects a secret collection of artifacts. The television film was released on American cable channel TNT on December 3, 2006. Gabrielle Anwar, Bob Newhart, Jane Curtin and Olympia Dukakis co-star. It is a sequel to 2004's The Librarian: Quest for the Spear. The third film in the trilogy, The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice, was released in 2008.
David N. Titcher is a screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the creator of The Librarian (franchise) writer of The Librarian: Quest for the Spear, The Curse of King Tut's Tomb, The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines, Around the World in 80 Days, Morgan Stewart's Coming Home, The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice and Houdini & Doyle.
The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice is a 2008 American made-for-television fantasy-adventure film and the third in The Librarian series starring Noah Wyle as a librarian who protects a secret collection of artifacts from Vlad Dracula and his vampire hordes. The television film was released on American cable channel TNT on December 7, 2008. It is a sequel to 2004's The Librarian: Quest for the Spear and 2006's The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines.
Flynn is a surname or first name of Irish origin.
Falling Skies is an American science fiction television series set in a post-apocalyptic era, created by Robert Rodat and executive produced by Steven Spielberg. The series stars Noah Wyle as Tom Mason, a former history professor who becomes the second-in-command of the 2nd Massachusetts Militia Regiment, a paramilitary group of remnant US military personnel, military veterans, civilians and various fighters fleeing Boston, US, following an alien invasion that devastated Earth.
The Librarians is an American fantasy adventure television series developed by John Rogers that premiered on TNT on December 7, 2014. The show is a direct spin-off of the Librarian film series, sharing continuity with the films. The Librarians are an ancient organization dedicated to protecting an innocent world from a magical and fantasy-like secret reality hidden from view. TNT cancelled the series in March 2018, days after the final episode of the fourth season. A spin-off called The Librarians: The Next Chapter will premiere during the 2024–25 broadcast season.
John Harlan Kim is an Australian actor of Korean descent. He is known for playing Ezekiel Jones on the 2014–2018 American adventure television series The Librarians.
Riverdale is an American television series based on the characters of Archie Comics. The series was adapted for the CW by Archie Comics' chief creative officer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, and is produced by Warner Bros. Television and CBS Studios, in association with Berlanti Productions and Archie Comics. Conceived as a feature film adaptation for Warner Bros. Pictures, the idea was re-imagined as a television series for Fox. In 2015, development on the project moved to The CW, where the series was ordered for a pilot. Filming took place in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Leverage: Redemption is an American action crime drama television revival of Leverage with most of the main cast returning. The first eight episodes premiered on Freevee on July 9, 2021, with an additional eight episodes released on October 8, 2021. In December 2021, the series was renewed for a second season. The second season began airing on November 15, 2022. In December 2023, the series was renewed for a third season and will move to Prime Video.