It's not often that an Americanized version of a British television import gets high marks from the people who created it in the first place, but Ashley Pharoah says he loves what ABC has done with his show "Life On Mars" since David E. Kelley left after the original pilot.
"We're really very proud of it," Pharoah told The Hollywood Reporter while visiting the show's New York set. "I think it's marvelous."
Pharoah co-created the series for BBC, which starred John Simm, who would later go on to play The Master in "Doctor Who." The original was a short-term series which ended with Simm's Sam Tyler discovering his trip to the 1970s was a result of a coma.
The American series, which stars Jason O'Mara, has already moved in a different direction, and that's perfectly OK for Pharoah.
"They're changing the mythology, which I think is all right," He said. "It has to be different. Otherwise everyone just goes on YouTube and sees how it ends."
ABC is not fully convinced there is a long life for "Life On Mars." It has ordered four additional episodes past its initial 12-episode order, and is moving to the show to Wednesdays after "Lost," creating what should be a better pairing than with its "Grey's Anatomy" lead-in. The network, however, has not committed to a full 22-episode season as of yet, and "Life On Mars" will have only a short time beginning at the end of January to convince the network to order more episodes.
Kelley left the series after filming an initial pilot set in Los Angeles when ABC agreed to give him one more shortened season of "Boston Legal." The network moved the show to New York, and recast many of the key roles, bring in actors like Harvey Keitel and "The Sopranos" star Michael Imperioli. In fact, only O'Mara was the last man standing when the show finally premiered this past fall.
"Life On Mars" returns Jan. 28 at 10 p.m. ET following "Lost" on ABC.
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Michael Hinman is the founder and site coordinator for Airlock Alpha and the entire BlipNetwork. He owns Quantum Global Media Inc., the parent corporation of the BlipNetwork. He's a print journalist by day, and lives in Tampa, Fla.
