Last week, Collider reported that Netflix’s animated series based on the popularMagic: The Gatheringhad beendiscarded by the streamer. Now, however, the series has risen from the graveyard with a new creative team. The streamer has tappedStar Trek: PicardproducerTerry Matalasto oversee the development of the series. It’s been a long and torturous development process for the series, which has been consistently been dealt a bad hand. It was first announced in 2019, and was to be produced by MCU superstar directorsJoe and Anthony Russo, withHenry Gilroy(Star Wars: The Clone Wars) andJose Molina(Firefly) as head writers.
After that teamdeparted over creative differences,Jeff Kline(Transformers: Prime) became the series' new executive producer.Superman ReturnsstarBrandon Routhwas cast as the voice of the series' main character, heroic Planeswalker Gideon Jura, in 2021, right around the same time the creative switch occurred. There had been no news on the series in some time, amid Netflix canceling a number of high-profile animated projects. Last week, in a Collider interview with Routh, he indicated that the series was “not happening;” it has not been revealed whether Routh will be involved with this third incarnation of the series.
Who Is Terry Matalas?
Matalas began his Hollywood career working on theStar TrekseriesVoyagerandEnterprise, writing two episodes of the latter. After working on the seriesTerra NovaandNikita, he created and showran12 Monkeysfor Syfy, a series adaptation ofTerry Gilliam’s mind-bending time travel pandemic thriller. Matalas subsequently consulted on the Syfy seriesBlood DriveandNightflyersand was brought in to showrun the fourth season ofMacGyverafterPeter Lenkovwas dismissed for misconduct.
Following that, he returned to theStar Trekfranchise to helm the second and third seasons ofPicard, the latter of which was rapturously received by Trekkies; he has announced his intentions to spin a new series,Star Trek: Legacy, out of that series, but it has yet to be greenlit. Matalas is currently working onVision Quest, a new MCU series that will star the alabaster-hued version of Android Avenger the Vision (Paul Bettany), spinning out ofWandaVision. He has already called onPicardstandoutTodd Stashwickto co-star in the series.
First introduced in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast, which has since been acquired by Rhode Island-based toy giantHasbro,Magic: The Gatheringis one of the world’s most popular collectible card games. Players build their decks and pit them against each other, drawing mana from locations to power heroes, creatures, and magical spells in a richly detailed fantasy world.
Netflix’sMagic: The Gatheringanimated series is in development. Stay tuned to Collider for future details.
