SeaQuest DSV

seaQuest DSV
The seaQuest DSV main title
GenreScience fiction
Created byRockne S. O'Bannon
Starring
Composers
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes57 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
Running time45 minutes per episode
Production companies
Original release
NetworkNBC[3]
ReleaseSeptember 12, 1993 (1993-09-12) –
June 9, 1996 (1996-06-09)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

SeaQuest DSV (stylized as seaQuest DSV and also promoted as simply seaQuest) is an American science fiction television series created by Rockne S. O'Bannon. It aired on NBC between 1993 and 1996. In its final season, it was renamed seaQuest 2032. Set in "the near future" (the year 2018 in the first season), seaQuest DSV originally mixed high drama with realistic scientific fiction.[4] The first two seasons star Roy Scheider as Captain Nathan Bridger, designer and commander of the eponymous naval submarine seaQuest DSV 4600, the ship prefix standing for "deep-submergence vehicle".

Jonathan Brandis portrays Lucas Wolenczak, a teenaged computer genius placed aboard seaQuest by his father, and Stephanie Beacham portrayed Kristin Westphalen, the chief medical officer and head of the seaQuest science department. In the opening episode of the third season Bridger departed DSV 4600 and was replaced by Captain Oliver Hudson, played by Michael Ironside. Also present was a dolphin character called Darwin who, due to technological advances, was able to communicate with the crew. Steven Spielberg expressed interest in the project and served as one of the show's executive producers during the first two seasons.

Production of the first season was marked by disputes between the producers, NBC and cast members, changes in the production staff, and an earthquake. The second season saw changes in the cast, as well as continued disputes between cast members and producers. The third season introduced a new lead actor and title. While initially popular, the series began to decline in ratings throughout its run and was abruptly canceled in the middle of its third season.[5]

"The twenty-first century. Mankind has colonized the last unexplored region on earth, the ocean. As captain of the seaQuest and its crew, we are its guardians. For beneath the surface lies the future."

- Opening Narration

  1. ^ "'seaquest' Star Calls Series 'Junk'". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on June 12, 2011. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
  2. ^ "Down-to-earth 'seaquest'". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on June 12, 2011. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
  3. ^ Margulies, Lee (September 15, 1993). "Spielberg's 'seaQuest DSV' Sails to Sunday-Night Win". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 2, 2012. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
  4. ^ "Lake Is Site Of Trial Of The Next Century". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved October 16, 2010.
  5. ^ "Spielberg Sinks With 'Seaquest". Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on February 3, 2013. Retrieved June 10, 2012.