Oasis (2017 film)

Oasis
Based onThe Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber
Screenplay byMatt Charman
Directed byKevin Macdonald
Starring
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of episodes1 (pilot only)
Production
Running time59 minutes
Original release
NetworkAmazon Video
Release17 March 2017 (2017-03-17)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Oasis is a pilot episode of an intended 2017 British television drama series, based on Michel Faber's 2014 novel The Book of Strange New Things.[1] It follows the adventures of a Scottish chaplain on an exoplanet colony.[2] Oasis was part of the 2017 pilot season wave 8 by Amazon Video.

The series' central character is chaplain Peter Leigh, played by Richard Madden, who is unexpectedly asked to travel to a remote planet, where USIC, a mysterious company, is building the first permanent off-world human colony, as environmental collapse shows Earth's habitability for humans is coming to an end.[3] On arrival at the colony, Leigh discovers there have been a series of accidents, which are being blamed on hallucinations some colonists are experiencing.[4] The method of space travel to the presumed exoplanet is not shown, but it requires a launch from Earth with a traditional rocket. The exoplanet is presented as covered by a desert-like landscape, apparently without vegetation or other forms of life, but having natural underground water resources and a breathable atmosphere.

It is unclear how closely a prospective series would follow Faber's plot about a preacher teaching aliens about Christianity.[1] The pilot premiered on Amazon Video on 17 March 2017;[3] future episodes may be ordered depending on the popularity of the pilot.[3] The pilot episode reached an average rating of 4.8/5 by Amazon Video users in December 2017.[3]

The pilot was written by Matt Charman (Oscar-nominated for Bridge of Spies)[5] and directed by Kevin Macdonald.[1]

  1. ^ a b c Beth Elderkin (18 March 2017). "Robb Stark is a space priest in Amazon's promising pilot Oasis". io9. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference IMDb title was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b c d "Oasis, season 1". Amazon Video. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  4. ^ Andrew Liptak (19 March 2017). "Amazon's pilot for Oasis raises more questions than it answers". The Verge. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  5. ^ Kitty Knowles (17 March 2017). "What to watch? These 5 great new Amazon Prime TV shows, obviously". The Memo. Retrieved 20 March 2017.