HBO is halting production on their forthcoming television series “Westworld” to put the finishing touches on the final scripts of season one. Whether or not this will move the 2016 air date remains to be seen.
HBO's production of “Westworld” has been temporarily shut down, according to sources at Variety. This shutdown was prompted by executive producers Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy. Production on “Westworld” stopped in November, and is said to resume in March.
“Westworld” is based on the book and film of the same name, which was written by Michael Crichton. The film, which was released in 1973, featured Yul Brynner in the lead role. The storyline showed the beginning stages of self-awareness in the artificially intelligent staff of a western-themed amusement park.
The HBO series will feature similar themes and boasts an all-star cast, including Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden and Thandie Newton. While a pilot was ordered by HBO in 2013, production didn't begin until 2015. The studio is confident the new scheduling shift will not change their proposed premiere date of 2016.
“Westworld” is produced by J.J. Abrams, Jerry Weintraub, Jonathan Nolan, Byran Burke, and Lisa Joy. Check out the first trailer for “Westworld” in the video at the top of this article.