Doorways
Encyclopedia
Doorways is a proposed Science Fiction
series from writer George R. R. Martin
. A pilot was shot in May 1992, starring George Newbern
, Anne Le Guernec, Robert Knepper
, Kurtwood Smith
and Carrie-Anne Moss
, but was not picked up, and the project was shelved. In 2010 IDW Publishing
began an adaption of the TV pilot into comic book format.
and she is trying to find a 'Door' to get back home. Thomas and Cat eventually locate a 'Door' and land in a new parallel world, all the while being chased by Cat's enemies, the servants of the Dark Lord.
pitched the concept for 'Doorways' in 1991 to various television networks, and ABC agreed to pick up the show. The pilot was produced with Columbia Pictures. Martin spent much of 1991 redrafting and polishing the pilot script. This process continued until in January 1992 production was given the green light, Anne Le Guernec cast as Cat, but the actor that the production company wanted for Thomas, George Newbern
, was in the middle of shooting a movie. After several hundred more auditions it was decided to defer the shooting of the pilot until Newbern became free in May 1992.
The series was originally called 'Doors' (the portals that Tom and Cat travel through are always called 'Doors' never 'Doorways') but this was changed after ABC expressed concern that it may be confused with either the rock band The Doors
or the Oliver Stone
biopic 'The Doors
'.
In August of 1992 a rough cut of the show was show to ABC executives who reacted enthusiastically and ordered six additional scripts for the show. Martin worked on those scripts for the next six months with Michael Cassutt
, Ed Zuckerman, Steve De Jarnatt
and J. D. Feigelson. In May 1993 ABC announced that they would not be picking up 'Doorways'.
was inspired by 'Doorways' in which the main cast also were fugitives fleeing through parallel worlds, while carrying a device that tells them where and when the next Doorway opens. At the time of Sliders launch, Evelyn C. Leeper
noted the similarities to Doorways, and in response to rumors that Sliders creator Tracy Tormé
applied for a writing position on the show, Martin clarified in a 1995 post on GEnie
that it was Tormé's agent that inquired about the position, and Tormé has denied any connection between the two.
George R.R. Martin noted in the first issue of 'Doorways' that artist Stefano Martino has not seen the pilot, and the visual representations of the characters and architecture are totally changed, he goes on to say that in the medium of comics without the constraints of budget there is more creative freedom. Martin says that the comic version "is much cooler than the television show could ever have been."
Issue #1 was released in November 2010.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
series from writer George R. R. Martin
George R. R. Martin
George Raymond Richard Martin , sometimes referred to as GRRM, is an American author and screenwriter of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He is best known for A Song of Ice and Fire, his bestselling series of epic fantasy novels that HBO adapted for their dramatic pay-cable series Game of...
. A pilot was shot in May 1992, starring George Newbern
George Newbern
George Young Newbern is an American television and film actor best known for his roles as Bryan MacKenzie in Father of the Bride and its sequel Father of the Bride Part II as well as Danny in Friends...
, Anne Le Guernec, Robert Knepper
Robert Knepper
Robert Lyle Knepper is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell in the Fox network's drama series Prison Break, for which he was nominated a Satellite Award...
, Kurtwood Smith
Kurtwood Smith
Kurtwood Larson Smith is an American television and film actor. He is best known for playing Clarence Boddicker in RoboCop and stern parental characters , and for his appearances in the genre of science fiction...
and Carrie-Anne Moss
Carrie-Anne Moss
-External links:...
, but was not picked up, and the project was shelved. In 2010 IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American publisher of comic books and comic strip collections. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic...
began an adaption of the TV pilot into comic book format.
Cast
- George NewbernGeorge NewbernGeorge Young Newbern is an American television and film actor best known for his roles as Bryan MacKenzie in Father of the Bride and its sequel Father of the Bride Part II as well as Danny in Friends...
as Dr. Thomas Mason - Anne Le Guernec as Cat
- Robert KnepperRobert KnepperRobert Lyle Knepper is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell in the Fox network's drama series Prison Break, for which he was nominated a Satellite Award...
as Thane - Kurtwood SmithKurtwood SmithKurtwood Larson Smith is an American television and film actor. He is best known for playing Clarence Boddicker in RoboCop and stern parental characters , and for his appearances in the genre of science fiction...
- Carrie-Anne MossCarrie-Anne Moss-External links:...
as Laura - Max GrodénchikMax GrodénchikMax Grodénchik , also known as Michael Grodénchik, is an American stage, film, and television actor, best known for his role as Rom on the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.- Background :...
as Roth
Plot
Doorways centers on Dr. Thomas Mason and his encounter with a mysterious and feral woman known only as Cat who is being investigated by the police and the FBI. Thomas learns that Cat is from a parallel universeParallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
and she is trying to find a 'Door' to get back home. Thomas and Cat eventually locate a 'Door' and land in a new parallel world, all the while being chased by Cat's enemies, the servants of the Dark Lord.
Dr. Thomas Mason
Thomas Mason is a medical doctor who is adept at magic since his father was a stage magician, and at the start of the show serves as an ER doctor. He has a girlfriend and is very content with his life until everything is changed completely when he meets Cat. She brings him with her through a 'Door' to a parallel world where things are similar, but different, to our world.Cat
Cat is a fugitive from a parallel Earth ruled by aliens, who lands on this Earth and is quickly injured. She is taken to hospital where she meets Thomas, but is taken from there to an FBI holding site, where she is rescued by Thomas. The pair hitch-hike to the nearest Doorway to another parallel world, and escape to an Earth where petrol has disappeared.Production
George R. R. MartinGeorge R. R. Martin
George Raymond Richard Martin , sometimes referred to as GRRM, is an American author and screenwriter of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He is best known for A Song of Ice and Fire, his bestselling series of epic fantasy novels that HBO adapted for their dramatic pay-cable series Game of...
pitched the concept for 'Doorways' in 1991 to various television networks, and ABC agreed to pick up the show. The pilot was produced with Columbia Pictures. Martin spent much of 1991 redrafting and polishing the pilot script. This process continued until in January 1992 production was given the green light, Anne Le Guernec cast as Cat, but the actor that the production company wanted for Thomas, George Newbern
George Newbern
George Young Newbern is an American television and film actor best known for his roles as Bryan MacKenzie in Father of the Bride and its sequel Father of the Bride Part II as well as Danny in Friends...
, was in the middle of shooting a movie. After several hundred more auditions it was decided to defer the shooting of the pilot until Newbern became free in May 1992.
The series was originally called 'Doors' (the portals that Tom and Cat travel through are always called 'Doors' never 'Doorways') but this was changed after ABC expressed concern that it may be confused with either the rock band The Doors
The Doors
The Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger...
or the Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
biopic 'The Doors
The Doors (film)
The Doors is a 1991 biopic about the 1960s-1970s rock band of the same name which emphasizes the life of its lead singer, Jim Morrison. It was directed by Oliver Stone, and stars Val Kilmer as Morrison, Meg Ryan as Pamela Courson , Kyle MacLachlan as Ray Manzarek, Frank Whaley as Robby Krieger,...
'.
In August of 1992 a rough cut of the show was show to ABC executives who reacted enthusiastically and ordered six additional scripts for the show. Martin worked on those scripts for the next six months with Michael Cassutt
Michael Cassutt
Michael Joseph Cassutt is an American television producer, screenwriter, and author. His notable TV work includes producing or writing, or both, for The Outer Limits, Eerie, Indiana, Beverly Hills, 90210, and The Twilight Zone...
, Ed Zuckerman, Steve De Jarnatt
Steve De Jarnatt
Steve De Jarnatt is an American film and television director, screenwriter, and short story author.He is best known for writing and directing the 1988 nuclear apocalypse thriller Miracle Mile and the film Cherry 2000....
and J. D. Feigelson. In May 1993 ABC announced that they would not be picking up 'Doorways'.
Connection to 'Sliders'
There has been speculation that SlidersSliders
Sliders is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast for five seasons, beginning in 1995 and ending in 2000. The series follows a group of travelers as they use a wormhole to "slide" between different parallel universes. The show was created by Robert K. Weiss and Tracy Tormé...
was inspired by 'Doorways' in which the main cast also were fugitives fleeing through parallel worlds, while carrying a device that tells them where and when the next Doorway opens. At the time of Sliders launch, Evelyn C. Leeper
Evelyn C. Leeper
Evelyn C. Leeper is an American writer, critic, and active member of science fiction fandom.She was a member and officer of the UMass Science Fiction Society from 1968 to 1972. In 1978 she and her husband Mark founded the Science Fiction Club at Bell Labs....
noted the similarities to Doorways, and in response to rumors that Sliders creator Tracy Tormé
Tracy Tormé
Tracy R. Tormé is an American screenwriter and television producer. He has worked for Saturday Night Live, Odyssey 5, Sliders, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Fire in the Sky and Carnivàle.-Sliders:...
applied for a writing position on the show, Martin clarified in a 1995 post on GEnie
GEnie
GEnie was an online service created by a General Electric business - GEIS that ran from 1985 through the end of 1999. In 1994, GEnie claimed around 350,000 users. Peak simultaneous usage was around 10,000 users...
that it was Tormé's agent that inquired about the position, and Tormé has denied any connection between the two.
Book
The first draft of the pilot script appeared in George R. R. Martin's 1200 page GRRM: A RRetrospective in 2003, republished as Dreamsongs: A RRetrospective in 2006.Comicbook adaption
On August 30th 2010, IDW Publishing announced its forthcoming adaption of 'Doorways' was to be in four parts. When speaking of the parallel worlds, editor Mariah Huehner says "One of the most interesting is a world with no oil. Which is pretty timely.", explaining the plot she says: "It's a dark sci-fi/fantasy, that's not unlike the Twilight Zone in terms of taking an ordinary person and suddenly confronting them with very bizarre events and people. Tom is a total "good" guy, loves his girlfriend, likes his job, and just wants to help people. But when Cat shows up she turns his comfortable world upside down.George R.R. Martin noted in the first issue of 'Doorways' that artist Stefano Martino has not seen the pilot, and the visual representations of the characters and architecture are totally changed, he goes on to say that in the medium of comics without the constraints of budget there is more creative freedom. Martin says that the comic version "is much cooler than the television show could ever have been."
Issue #1 was released in November 2010.