V: The Original Miniseries Why is V: The Classic Mini-Series Still Relevant Today?

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so when you first signed on to do V do you imagine that we'd still be talking about it 36 years later I not only didn't imagine that it would have the lifespan that it had but when we were first filming V many of us were very experienced filmmakers young people that we were we had we were very experienced filmmakers we didn't know that it was going to be as big as it was at the moment of its release nor that the impact would be as as telling as it was upon upon the viewing public I remember the first time that we went into a screening room it was actually a beautiful big theater with a huge wide screen and we saw what we'd been working on for so many months for the first time all assembled all put together all the special effects and sound and everything and we were stunned it was as though we were watching a completely different production than from whatever was that we imagined that we were doing at the time could you have imagined that it's been so relevant even still what we're talking about in today's society I think that I think themes of of what holds society together and what what terror society apart those themes are universal themes and I think they're always going to be relevant I think they're there's going to be a necessity for things like V to be revisited in order that society remember why what it is that's cohesive and coherent about it and why it is that we should all stand together and and treat each other well I'm gonna read this because I'm not gonna get it right otherwise so in 2005 Entertainment Weekly named V one of the 10 best miniseries on DVD and in 2008 they placed it on the sci-fi of 25 of the genres best since 1982 list as the creator how does that feel for you did you have any idea you'd be creating something so iconic it's it's funny no I had no idea it would become that iconic I had been I've been lucky I think when you create one iconic thing in your career it's a big deal and I had done the bi created the Bionic Woman and then the Incredible Hulk came along Stan Lee of course created the character but it was the TV series that you know so those two became iconic sort of in their own way and then V came along and you know what I think Alison it was because it's such a classic story because as I said often I think about it as like Spartacus or the revolt and the revolt of the slaves you know or the American Revolution or apartheid it's really a story about any society when when a hyper power rolls in and you know you there gonna be people that will suck up to it like the Vichy French did it's a grand eyes themselves yeah power I want to be next to power and and then they're the people that are trying to keep their heads down well dodged the bullet I'm not Jewish maybe they won't get me you know and and that's what the scientists of course represent envy or the scapegoated people like been branded as others this has been happening recently in our country and then there are the people that say no no this is wrong and we have to fight back against this and we may get killed doing it but we have to speak up and say no this is wrong and and I think that's a story that is as in the public consciousness as much now as it ever and particularly in the climate that we're in now and because part of what V is about is about how a charismatic leader can construct you in and with promises and as a matter if I've got lines even in the script mark marks character Mike Donovan says how did a person like that get to be your leader and Martin says charisma and promises and circumstances and and not enough of us spoke up to question it before until it was too late and then he says it's happened in your country too hasn't it and your planet too and of course it has and it's a it's a scary time I think for us in this in this society right now and I think that's why it's bubbled back up and why'd the novel that inspired me originally it can't happen here it's been back in the press it's so important to to be able to hang on to our values and to and to have the profiles and courage that John Kennedy wrote about yes I absolutely agree with you looking back when to the very beginning when you were writing when you were creating this is there anything you would go back and change it's interesting because now as we're looking to move forward and do V the movie and take it into the two sequels of based on my novel the second VV the second generation you know I went back and looked carefully at the script and said okay well now what do I want to fix what do I want to reimagine here and I have looked at it and the more I looked at it the more and the more input I got from fans was don't mess with it don't try to reinvent the wheel they like that's right oh you know and so what I'm what we're hoping to do in the movie is a real faithful remake not a reimagining a remake then certainly it'll all be brought up into the 21st century and all of that but the bottom line is it's a classic story that's I think what has given it it's staying power because it just it doesn't go away it's a true story of life from humanity absolutely well thanks for talking with us we're excited to see it coming out on blu-ray blu-ray edition is just sensational it is so cool to have an archive quality like this is it's great great we're excited thank you so much [Music]