J.J. Abrams is set to produce a new four-part documentary series about UFOs. The series is simply titled UFO and will be made for Showtime.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, UFO will be executive produced by Abrams and directed by Mark Monroe and Paul Crowder. Monroe previously co-wrote the Oscar-winning doping scandal exposé Icarus, while Crowder worked as an editor on acclaimed documentaries such as Dogtown and Z-Boys and Sound City.
The synopsis for UFO states that the show will explore “what clandestine influence the American government, lucrative private companies, and the military may have in shielding the truth behind extraterrestrial phenomena to further their own agendas” as well as examining “the history of the phenomenon through cultural and political touchpoints, including shocking testimony from eyewitnesses across the country.” The show doesn’t have a premiere date yet.
The announcement of the new series couldn’t be more timely. Members of the House Intelligence Committee are soon to receive classified briefings on on UFOs sightings (now termed UAP, or Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon), with an unclassified version of the report presented to Congress at the end of June.
As well as making UFO, Abrams is involved in a variety of projects for DC. He’s producing a new Superman movie, which will be written by Ta-Nehisi Coates and feature a Black superman. In addition, he’s developing a new Constantine show for HBO Max, as well as one focusing on the superpowered sorceress Zatanna, to be written by Promising Young Woman director Emerald Fennell.
