Tom Hanks Will Bring Fresh Sci-Fi To The Internet With Electric City

By Joshua Tyler | Updated

This article is more than 2 years old

With science fiction rapidly vanishing off television, in an environment where even the few shows left are losing money, maybe it’s time to accept that the best place for one of the most important genres of fiction is on the internet. I’m not actually sure I’m ready to wave the white flag, but that seems to be Tom Hanks’ approach with his new sci-fi series Electric City.

America’s best beloved actor has created this new, animated science fiction series which will air exclusively on Yahoo through his film and TV brand Playtone. Hanks will also voice the lead character on the show.

Electric City is set in post-apocalyptic world where characters live in a seemingly peaceful city which is actually a state controlled facade. In the best traditions of science fiction, the stories will attempt to address social issues using sci-fi themes. Whether they’ll do that the right way by raising questions that encouraging the audience to think for themselves or by getting all preachy remains to be seen, but there’s a lot of talk of addressing energy consumption. Combine that pro-environmental theme with the involvement of Hanks makes me suspect preachy. Still, I’m willing to give it a shot.

Plans for the show were announced last week at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas, which should never be confused with the porn convention across the street. Those in attendance were also shown a 45 minute presentation, but the truth is that Electric City is still in early development. Don’t expect to see this on Yahoo for awhile. Once it does show up streaming through their various channels, it’ll be available in multiple languages including Spanish and French.