JJ Abrams Talks Sci-Fi Procedural Almost Human

FOX is getting ready to debut Almost Human later this fall, and this week producer JJ Abrams (Alias, Fringe, LOST, Star Trek, et al) talked about the show with reporters invited to Bad Robot’s Santa Monica offices — including about the challenges of creating a futuristic, sci-fi procedural.

He said that the police procedural will feel familiar, with the twist that the cases that are investigated and the technology used will be unusual.

Almost Human is “much more a cop show that you might feel is familiar with a wrench thrown into that, with the huge adjustment being that the cases themselves aren’t what you’ve seen before,” Abrams said. “The truths of the differences between these characters are atypical because of the world of which it takes place.”

It allows the show’s writers to do what Abrams loves most: taking a traditional form and injecting an unexpected twist.

Karl Urban and Michael Ealy star as a pair of Los Angeles detectives in the year 2048 — when humans are partnered with “synthetics” (very human-like androids) in their work. Urban plays John Kennex, an officer who returns to the Force following a coma. Ealy is Dorian, an older model android that is pulled out of mothballs to work alongside Kennex.

Almost Human will be less serialized than Fringe, FOX’s previous effort with Abrams and company. “It feels very distinct from the world of Fringe, which was much more serialized show about this dysfunctional father-son, this romance that went over not just years but worlds,” he said. “This is a show that doesn’t quite get into that level of serialized storytelling.”

Instead it will follow the model of Bad Robot’s CBS hit Person of Interest: weekly cases that don’t always tie in to the over-arching, serialized elements.

While the show should feel like home to dedicated sci-fi fans, Abrams and FOX also hope for broader appeal. “This is a show that, if you are a fan of sci-fi, if you’re a fan of Blade Runner, if you’re a fan of Asimov or Bradbury, you’ll see this and you’ll go, ‘This feels like this is something in that universe.’ But the truth is the show is being made for people who go, ‘I want to see a great procedural. I want to see a great crime drama, great characters in a very unique situations.’ That’s the thrust of what we’re trying to do here.”

FOX also released a cool new poster to promote the show, featuring the two lead actors:

Read more of Abrams’ comments at The Hollywood Reporter.

Almost Human premieres November 4 on FOX, when it will air Mondays alongside new fantasy hit Sleepy Hollow.  Head over to our Almost Human series guide for more on the show!