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The producers tease Wednesday's series finale of Life on Mars
Josh Appelbaum and Scott Rosenberg—executive producers of ABC's recently canceled time-jumping series Life on Mars—offered SCI FI Wire a few exclusive thoughts on how the show will end its run on Wednesday with the series finale, "Life Is a Rock," at 10 p.m. ET/PT. (Spoilers ahead!)
The producers also ruminated on why the show failed to find a larger audience, the differences between their version and the original BBC show on which it's based and the new pilot they're filming in Toronto right now. Following is an edited version of our exclusive interview with Appelbaum and Rosenberg.
I know a lot of people are upset that Life on Mars is airing the series finale. When did you guys find out about the cancellation?
Appelbaum: We had two endings [for the first season]. We had an ending for the series finale and the season finale in mind, and we asked if we could shoot both. And that would give us a little more time, and you can see a couple more air dates and how the ratings were. But we really got a sense that things were looking grim. So we said, "What do you think?" Because we had done this show called October Road prior, and it got canceled before we could wrap up some pertinent questions. And we didn't want to have that happen again. So we asked, and word came back that "We have good news and bad news. The good news is they will let you shoot a series finale. The bad news is they will only let you shoot a series finale." So it was quietly devastating.
Tell us about the final episode ...
Rosenberg: Basically, this episode was always going to be the season finale, so we just switched things up towards the end. But we always wanted it to culminate with him and his parents. ... Amongst our favorite things that we did was always with his father and his mother. Every time we went to that well, it really worked for us. You'll realize when you see it Wednesday night at 11:00, you'll see that the whole theme of the entire 17 hours was all leading up to this. It was all about what we deal with in episode 17.
Of course, you guys knew what the ending was in the original BBC series Life on Mars. And you had to make a decision about whether or not to do the same thing. Is this the same ending you originally planned?
Rosenberg: Different ending than the BBC ending, for sure. But we did know from the first week that the writing staff was assembled, and we were all sitting around trying to figure out "Where is this going?" We kind of came up with a notion of where we wanted to end it. ... When you see the ending in this, whether you love it or hate it—and I'm sure some people are going to love it and some people are going to hate it, as they do with series finales—it's very honest. Meaning we've been laying in clues, building up to what this ending is for the past 17 hours. For sure.
Knowing the ending to the BBC series, which is very sad, I have to ask this: Do you think American audiences can take the same sort of ending as British audiences?
Rosenberg: I think that they probably ... I don't know. ... That's a really good question. I mean, who knows? They certainly didn't take the series. That thing was a huge hit there, and, God knows, ours wasn't. Who knows what they could or couldn't take? We'll never know, because ours is so different from theirs. It really is. It's not that we were worried about what they could or couldn't take. It's just that we had planned to be on for years and years. And anybody with Wikipedia could go look up Life on Mars BBC and find out what the ending is. You know? So we always said from the beginning that we had to do something different. And we just followed the pattern. We never did anything that we couldn't explain in the wrap-up. We never diverged.
The BBC did a spinoff called Ashes to Ashes. Did you ever have any plans to do that as well?
Rosenberg: In our dream world, if this had been big hit, it would have been fun to have spun it off, if the original creators were interested. In this world, now, ... they don't do many spinoffs of failed TV shows [laughs].
Well, you certainly have some loyal fans. There were petitions, etc. How gratifying was that?
Rosenberg: It was great. We always say that. We've done these two shows, which have had an incredibly loyal fan base. Which is so amazing. But at the same time, it would be nice just to have a hit [laughs].
What do you think it was? The hiatus?
Rosenberg: The hiatus didn't help. I think, at the end of the day, it was the wrong show for the wrong network. A little bit of not enough science fiction for the science fiction people, not enough of a cop show for the cop-show people. The bottom line about the show was that it was like nothing else on television. It was so uniquely original, and those things usually have to be given time. In this world that we live in now, there is very much a box-office mentality to television now. If you don't come up with huge numbers from the gate, you don't last too long.
Appelbaum: It's also, and this is a more pedestrian answer, but the title is a tricky one as well. The title and how it reflects on what the show is. I mean, you see that title come up on your TiVo, and you think, is it a Discovery Channel documentary? A flat-out science fiction show? A space-station show? So it might have confused audiences as to what we were offering.
Rosenberg: That's why our new show is called Pizza and Girls! [laughs]
Appelbaum: You'll know exactly what you're getting when you tune in [laughs].
So what do you guys have coming up next?
Rosenberg: We're actually in Toronto right now, shooting a two-hour pilot for ABC called Happy Town.
What's that about?
Rosenberg: : It's very much Twin Peaks. It's a scary show. Small town, mall town. Scary show. We're more than halfway done with it, and it's amazing.
Any cast you can let us know about?
Rosenberg: It's a humongous cast. There's Jeff Stultz, who was in our show October Road, Amy Acker. ... Who else is in the show? Dean Winters, who played the dad in
By Samuel1701 at 7:48 AM ON 03/31/09
I hate to see this show bite the dust. It is brilliant, well acted, and all the Characters are wonderfully fleshed out in a way that is connected to, but still different from, their British original counterparts. One wonders how it would have done on cable, where the ratings numbers crunch slightly differently. On the other hand, it is worth noting that at 17 hours, the American Life on Mars has one hour *more* than its forebear--which came in at 16 hours of television. Maybe this kind of story works better as a Novel for television--with a definite start, middle and end.
By Thomas at 9:19 AM ON 03/31/09
It's times like this when you are reminded just how committed to mediocrity the networks truly are. Firefly, Journeyman, and now...Life on Mars. And of course, the REAL tragedy is that SciFi Channel never even bothered to consider picking them up. It would have been a damn sight better than all those gawdawful giant-snake-that-ate-a-small-town flicks that they love to waste their money on.
By PK at 9:31 AM ON 03/31/09
I agree with Thomas. Network TV now seems to be inundated with reality shows, which were fine when there were only one or two.
Now they are everywhere!
As for the British Version of LOM, having seen the entire series long before this one I was very impressed and am also impressed with Ashes to Ashes.
Basically, I now find American TV to be boring. Most new shows seem to be a rehash of older shows. Very little originality. ER broke ground on medical shows. Now they are a dime a dozen and it is ending.
I love Fringe. But face it. It is an undated version of the X-Files.
Glad SiFi has picked up Primeval. It's another great original British Show. Along with Doctor Who, Torchwood and Sarah Jane.
Says something, that the only way American TV does anything right is to steal it from the BBC. They've been doing it for years.
By ajd54 at 9:32 AM ON 03/31/09
2 points: Harvey Keitel was miscast as Gene Hunt
and the end of the BBC version wasn't sad - it was uplifting and hopeful. I'd like to think that if I was in the same condition as Sam was that I would be having a vibrant (if not confusing) life in my mind.
By EpsilonProcess at 9:58 AM ON 03/31/09
Sadly, the ratings went up over 20% between episodes 14 and 16 but it was too-little, too-late and the line had already been drawn weeks prior. Sad they couldn't shoot a cliffhanger too. There's a huge fanbase and some of the outpourings from the petition comments have been astounding. A cable channel should really pick this up if it's at all feasible. In any case, if fans want to continue fighting to save the show, there's a couple of sites that might help.
www.SaveOurSam.com
z3.invisionfree.com/Life_On_Mars
By stealthgear at 10:46 AM ON 03/31/09
If you cancel Journey Man and then give us this junk, what do you expect to happen? This was one of the most in-cohesive tv shows I've ever watched. Glad its gone.
By Vorlon at 10:47 AM ON 03/31/09
Cliche-driven plots, obvious endings, over-the-top Keitel, and a writing staff that allowed one too many anachronisms to slip past. Russian mobsters in 1977 NYC? Just a couple of decades off.
By Eldon at 11:39 AM ON 03/31/09
Mixed feelings. I liked the show. Harvey Keitel was definitely the wrong choice for Gene Hunt. But I was beginning to empathize with Sam. I was starting to enjoy the journey. Of course, you can never compare it with the UK version. John Simm and Philip Glenister were the perfect combination. And Liz White was simply beautiful as Annie; absolutely perfect. I like Gretchen Mol but it took me some time to buy her as Annie. And I prefer the slightly more pleasantly plump girl anyways.
I willing to let this one go.
By jbs780 at 1:53 PM ON 03/31/09
POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN THESE COMMENTS FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SEEN THE BRITT ENDIING!!!
I don't know that I can agree that the Britt ending was uplifting. I understand the choice Britt Sam made...but ultimatly he chose fantasy and death over reality and MAKING his LIFE better. That, I think is sad. But again, I understand the choice he made. I was diappointed that Britt Sam apparetntly made no effort to find out if Gene, Annie and the boys were, in fact...REAL. Thought that would be a priority once he woke up.
Journeyman was great...but that does not make LOM...junk. Just sayin' so don't be hatiin'!
Captcha failed again. No hope that Sci Fi Wire is EVER going to fix the furshlurgener thing.
By AntonSolo at 4:20 PM ON 03/31/09
I really enjoyed this version of LOM. I thought it was as god as the original version from the moment I saw sam's face when he saw the Trade Center back up and standing, still in the process of being built. That scene alone made the show for me.
When the chuckleheads at Disney decided to kill yet another good show before it had the chance to grow into its audience, it became the death knell for me as far as network TV is concerned. Granted I will still watch certain shows, i.e. CBS Monday nights, but except for sports, I'm pretty much done with the networks.
Of course I'm not happy about Sci-Fi changing their name, but that's a post for another entry...
By Mandy at 4:35 PM ON 03/31/09
The British version was definitely better. The American pilot episode was poor. And it was obvious the writers weren't even alive yet in the nineteen seventies. They didn't even realize there were Jeeps available to he public yet in the seventies. It also felt a bit dumbed down for America which insulted me as an American. I sincerely hope they don't try to pull this with Being Human (BBC show I'm currently obsessed with about a werewolf, vampire and ghost sharing a place together and trying to pass for mortals).
By jbs780 at 5:45 PM ON 03/31/09
"Being Human (BBC show I'm currently obsessed with about a werewolf, vampire and ghost sharing a place together and trying to pass for mortals)."
Possible stupid question of the half century...is this a serious show or a comedy?
By sbtrekie at 8:34 PM ON 03/31/09
Josh and Andre-
Loved, loved,loved Life on Mars.Great cast, Jason O'Mara is tremendous. Abc did the show no favors by pulling it for 2 months and then bringing it back against Law and Order and CSI. If your not a hit in 3 shows, your gone.
Thank you for an amazing show--I hope you get to read all the thank you's on the LoM message board and "head over" to the theory thread and tell us what you think!
Looking forward to your next show--just wish it wasn't on abc!
By dh at 8:36 PM ON 03/31/09
It really upsets me when the networks help other shows like Castle and not help LOM. Castle is on two nights--to build an audience. Why couldn't they do that for Life? They control what is on and off the TV.
By Mandy at 10:35 PM ON 03/31/09
'is this a serious show or a comedy?'
Being human is actually serious. It's surprisingly good. It has some funny moments but it's more a drama. The monsters represent social disorders.
By Liam at 5:45 PM ON 04/01/09
I'll really miss Life on Mars. :-(
By plw725 at 8:38 AM ON 04/02/09
make a DVD. I loved this!!!!!!!
By nycgirl2 at 2:14 PM ON 04/02/09
My husband and I loved this show. We're sorry to see it go but thank you so much for wrapping it up for us! It was an interesting and very unexpected ending. We hope there will be a DVD set of the series with more info soon!
By Jumbybird at 3:42 PM ON 04/02/09
I missed the original tremendously and will miss this one... It was a shock seeing this episode 5 minutes ago ( I didn't realize the show was cancelled and this was the finale)
Miss you Spaceman...
By mread at 9:52 PM ON 04/02/09
Loved this show until the last 15 minutes. Crap, crappity, crap. Would have rathered it left us hanging then than that reveal. SPOILER ALERT: turns out it's a computer glitch. The show was about daddy issues all along.
By Eldritch at 10:04 PM ON 04/02/09
I enjoyed the show. I watched all the episodes. But the astronaut ending broke the tone of the series. It was awful and a cheat to the audience.
When Rosenberg said above that his show was ...so uniquely original..., who was he trying to kid? Since when is a REMAKE unique or original?
By Samuel1701 at 10:36 AM ON 04/03/09
1. Strangely enough, I saw the ending coming a mile off--my wife and I kept noticing the constant references to space (Earth through the Airplane window, and Annie on the magazine cover as flight Attendant with a rocket through the window). 2. I am not sure how I feel about that ending, but I disagree that it was just another "Oh, it's just a dream." It was a dream, but it had a point--reconciling Sam to his father. 3. I do like the conceit of this one that 2008 is also unreal--which is a point of the British as well but made differently. 4. The last image has a very interesting ambiguity. Gene Hunt's white loafer hitting the surface of Mars--is this symbolic or an indicator that we *still* don't have the full picture.
By JoAn at 12:22 PM ON 04/03/09
I didn't see it coming and I will miss the show. The actors were all a treat to watch, even if some of them were miscast. I loved the ending and was glad the writers got to wrap up the story. Maybe, instead of being sad that our shows are cancelled after one season, networks could give us one-season shows. Instead of searching for a storyline year after year, write a one season story, letting the viewer know that questions will be answered by the end of the season. I watched Lost the first season, now I'm lost. Every year we tune into Idol or Dancing to see who will win that season.
By nannybell at 6:09 PM ON 04/03/09
Question stealthgear,
If you did not like the show than why are you on this site about LOM? Alot of us love this show.
By Princess at 12:08 AM ON 04/04/09
I was also struck by the last image of Gene Hunt's white shoe stepping out onto Mar's. I thought the space ending was a bit jarring but somewhat expected. I loved the entire cast and thought the chemistry between Harvey K. and Jason O. was awesome. I will miss this show alot.
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Princess:
I was also struck by the last image of Gene Hunt's white shoe stepping out onto Mar's. I thought the space ending ...More »