NBC executives told reporters that the pitch for its upcoming superhero drama Heroes started out shakily, but was strong enough to fly. Speaking at the Television Critics Association summer press tour last week, NBC Entertainment president Kevin Reilly admitted that the initial "concept was a little unwieldy. [Creator] Tim Kring came in and started saying, 'I want to tell you a show about some characters.'"
Heroes stars an ensemble cast who portray people who suddenly begin to discover that they have super powers. "And it was a diverse group of characters set around the world," Reilly recalled. "And he started saying, 'Imagine if you woke up one morning, and you actually believed you could fly? What would that do to your life? Would that, in fact, be the best thing that ever happened to you or the worst thing that ever happened to you? What would you do with it? What if all of a sudden you felt like you were meant for something greater, and you started feeling that maybe other people had a similar calling? Were you crazy? Are you insane?' It was one of those pitches—and I've been fortunate enough to be in a quite a few—where it was right there from minute one."
Kring has an eight-year history as producer for NBC, on Crossing Jordan and Providence. He seemed enthusiastic about the Heroes idea, Reilly said. "You looked in the guy's eyes, and you saw the show, and that's the way it felt through casting," Reilly added. "We didn't have to send him back to the drawing board time and time again. ... All I can say, speaking to this show, is there feels like there is a cohesive vision, and I think it's going to end up being a fantastic ride for everybody involved."
In a separate interview, Kring said he went into the pitch session telling a dark story, not a superhero tale. "The idea [always] had a ... dark side to these abilities as well," he said. "And I'm sort of positing that it could be you or me or anybody who has this. It's very much about free will. And if you are naturally inclined to be good, then you veer in that direction."
The show, starring Hayden Panettiere, Ali Larter, Adrian Pasdar, Greg Grunberg and others, debuts Sept. 25 with a two-hour movie. "We're going to platform Heroes the second week of the season," Reilly said. "I'm very happy that Nissan has come on board [as] the single sponsor of the Heroes premiere. So that telecast will be presented with limited interruption." Heroes will air Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT. NBC is owned by NBC Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.
http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index...ory=0&id=37317
07-28-2006, 06:01 AM
Heroes Strong Enough To Fly 
