SDCC Interview: Exec. Producer David Eick on ‘Caprica’ and the End of ‘BSG’
Producer and Writer David Eick has one of the best jobs in television. Each week he gets to work alongside Ron Moore, Mark Verheiden, Jane Espenson, other talented writers, a brilliant cast and a superb crew to produce one of the best shows on television: Battlestar Galactica. From his early work on projects such as Hercules: The Legendary Journeys through American Gothic until his turn on the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica, Eick has consistently managed to be involved with some innovative, and in many ways groundbreaking, television shows.
I had a chance to sit down and talk with Eick during the Battlestar Galactica press event at the San Diego Comic-Con. During that time we discussed the show, its Caprica spin-off and his feelings now that Battlestar is coming to an end. There were also a few other collegues at this particular event, so any questions not mine are in italics.
COMIC MIX: You’re probably not going to be able to answer any of my questions are you?
DAVID EICK: No, no I’m good.
CMix: You showed some footage from Caprica during the Battlestar panel today? How’s the new show going?
DE: We finished shooting on the pilot which is now in post and we’re breaking stories for the first batch of episodes that hopefully we’ll have a reason to produce. We’re excited about it and so is the network. The truth is that even more so than with the original Battlestar mini-series, we’re hopeful and anticipating a successful series run with this.
CMix: But there’s no "official" series commitment from Sci-Fi as yet?
DE: Not yet. But we’ve been working on the cut of the pilot for some time and its very strong.
CMix: What can you tell us about the story of Caprica?
DE: Well, its really a glimpse into the beginnings of the articifial intelligence industry war. This war deliniates itself in terms of two families, the Greystones and the Adamas, that are struggling for this technology which will one day lead to the creation of the Cylons.
CMix: In addition to Caprica, there’s another Battlestar TV movie such as Razor, correct?
DE: We are talking about that with the network. Its not an official project yet but its definately in the works and being written. Like Razor, it will be another perspective on an existing story that in a Rashomon-like way will provide viewers with a different angle on something they thought they already knew.
CMix: So its not an extended series finale?
DE: No.
CMix: You’ve finished shooting all the remaining Battlestar episodes at this point?
DE: Yes, we’re in post on the show now.
CMix: Now that Battlestar, as a series, is basically finished for you are you satisfied with the way it turned out?
DE: Yeah, its exactly what we wanted to do and what we talked about doing several years ago and we’re really pleased with the way it turned out.
CMix: There’s so many characters and so many interweaving storylines in BSG, do you feel all the characters got their due at the end?
DE: Absolutely. That I think the audience will be very pleased with.
New episodes of Battlestar Galactica are coming back to Sci-Fi channel soon. If you couldn’t be at Comic-Con this year, for a first look at the new Caprica series, check out a special sneak-preview over at the official Sci-Fi Channel website.