It’s time to board the Jupiter 2 (or will it be 3 this time) and head out into deep space, because Netflix’s Lost in Space reboot has finally cast its patriarchal figure, John Robinson. Stepping into the space pirate role? An actual, real pirate—Black Sails‘ Toby Stephens.
The part of Robinson—originated by Guy Williams in the ’60s TV version, later portrayed cinematically by William Hurt in 1998—has been both a family man and one estranged from his wife and kids, leaving his potential characterization fairly open-ended. However, the logline for the Netflix iteration describes it as “an epic but grounded science fiction saga focusing on a young explorer family from Earth lost in an alien universe,” meaning the Lost in Space reboot will center around the Robinson family as they face challenges and attempt to stay together “against seemingly insurmountable odds.” So, in a nutshell: this will be far more like its original 1965 – 1968 TV version than the grittier movie take.
Casting Stephens in such a role is fairly intriguing, as he’s largely known to play more of an anti-hero and/or bad guy type—I mean, he played Bond villain Gustav Graves for goodness sake. That said we’re all about actors bucking their conventions, and are more than thrilled to see Stephens take on the intergalactic family man when his ship rolls out towards Alpha Centauri in 2018.
What do you think of the news? Beam your thoughts into the comments below.
Images: 20th Century Fox/CBS
Alicia Lutes is the Managing Editor of Nerdist and creator/co-host of Fangirling. Find her on Twitter if you’re into that sorta thing.
