With four episodes broadcast so far, Syfy is feeling very bullish on The Expanse and has ordered a second season. The ten episode season got its premiere with the first two episodes airing after the first two installments of their Childhood’s End event and also put all four episodes up on demand through various providers to allow viewers to binge and get hooked on it. The second season has a natural bit of a wait to it as it will arrive in early 2017, but it’s getting an increase from ten to thirteen episodes. The length of time between seasons is due to the extensive special effects involved, though produced Alcon had planned on a second season early on and already commissioned a large chunk of the scripts and prepared for it before the first season aired.
“The Expanse is firing on all cylinders creatively, building a passionate fan base among viewers and critics alike, and delivering on Syfy’s promise of smart, provocative science fiction entertainment,” said Dave Howe, President, Syfy and Chiller.
The project got a straight to series order as the property was in a very competitive situation. It’s also the first series for the Alcon Television Group to get the go ahead as that group along with writers Mark Fergus and Hawk Otsby, who worked on Children of Men and Iron Man. The pair serve as writers and executive producers on the series.
“The Expanse is epic in scale and scope and promises to be Syfy’s most ambitious series to date,” said Syfy President Dave Howe last summer. “Bringing this coveted book franchise to television with our partners at Alcon and the Sean Daniel Company is a giant win for Syfy, reinforcing our overall strategy to produce bold, provocative and compelling sci-fi fantasy stories.”
Plot concept: A thriller set 200 years in the future, The Expanse follows the case of a missing young woman who brings a hardened detective and a rogue ship’s captain together in a race across the solar system to expose the greatest conspiracy in human history.
