Season 1 • Episode 2
LatestMatt, an American journalist, and his fiancée, Jessie, are killed in an explosion, but reawaken in a very unusual afterlife — a mysterious planet with an endless river terrain. Everyone who has ever lived on Earth has been resurrected simultaneously in this strange new world. Determined to find Jessie, Matt joins forces with an intrepid crew including a 13th century female warrior and Riverboat captain Mark Twain. Embarking upriver, their adventure begins, all the while tracked by the watchful eye of a mysterious alien force.
Riverworld is a television film released on the Syfy channel on April 18, 2010. Based on the Riverworld books by Philip José Farmer, the made-for-TV film is a reboot of the aborted Sci-Fi Channel Riverworld television series, of which only the pilot episode was produced. Riverworld stars Tahmoh Penikett, Laura Vandervoort, Jeananne Goossen, Alan Cumming, Mark Deklin, and Peter Wingfield. It is produced by Reunion Pictures, an award-winning Canadian-based production company. It is written by Robert Hewitt Wolfe and directed by Stuart Gillard.
Acting
Alan Cumming devouring scenery as a riverboat villain.
Production
Canadian locations standing in for eternal afterlife.
Writing
Robert Hewitt Wolfe cramming epic scope into 90 minutes.
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was a second attempt after a 2003 pilot starring Brad Johnson failed to launch. Syfy really wanted this universe.
Philip José Farmer's 12-book series influenced everything from The Matrix to Cloud Atlas, making this adaptation's rushed scope almost tragic.
US
