''Adventure Inc.'' is a dramatised
adventure television series produced primarily in Canada which aired from 30 September 2002 to 12 May 2003. It was a co-production of
Fireworks Entertainment (Canada),
Tribune Entertainment (United States),
M6 (France), Amy International (UK), and Tele München (Germany). The series premise was inspired by the work of modern-day explorer
Barry Clifford.
Distribution was by syndication throughout the United States and by
Global in Canada. Following its only season, the episodes were aired in Canada on
Space.
Series outline
The preamble and voiceover from the opening titles tell the premise of the show:
"My name is Judson Cross. I've been called everything from a treasure hunter to a thrill seeker, but personally I like to think of myself as a professional explorer. My company is Adventure, Inc. and we're in the business of finding things - things that are priceless, dangerous, sometimes even unexplainable. My crew will go anywhere and risk everything. Adventure really is our business".
As he travels along different corners of the world, Cross is accompanied by two partners: Mackenzie (
Karen Cliche) and Gabriel (
Jesse Nilsson).
Publicity
Fireworks International went into Cannes with Adventure Inc., and with its star Michael Biehn worked the
Croisette
The Promenade de la Croisette (), or Boulevard de la Croisette, is a prominent road in Cannes, France. It stretches along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea and is about 2 km long. The Croisette is known for the Palais des Festivals et des ...
hard to promote the show.
[Adventure lighting up Cannes by Charles Masters - Hollywood Reporter, 8–14 October 2002] Biehn was joined by executive producer
Gale Ann Hurd
Gale Anne Hurd (born October 25, 1955) is an American film and television producer, the founder of Valhalla Entertainment (formerly Pacific Western Productions), and a former recording secretary for the Producers Guild of America.
Early life
Hu ...
, who had gotten Biehn roles in ''
The Terminator
''The Terminator'' is a 1984 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator, a cyborg assassin sent back in time from 2029 to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), whos ...
'' and ''
Aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrat ...
'', both films they had done with Hurd's then-husband
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker. A major figure in the post-New Hollywood era, he is considered one of the industry's most innovative filmmakers, regularly pushing the boundaries of cinematic capability w ...
. Now divorced, she and Biehn hoped to make a splash with this TV show.
The show's main character is Judson Cross, a seafaring adventurer-for-hire, and was originally Hurd's idea, based partly on the real-life exploits of her close friend, explorer
Barry Clifford, discoverer of the ''
Whydah Gally'' (the world's only authenticated pirate shipwreck).
"It's not common in television to have a character inspired by real events and real character," she said.
The research vessel, ''Vast Explorer'', featured in the show was named in honor of the ship used by Clifford.
Hurd maintained that the one big difference between film and television was budgets, and that in relation to her films, Adventure Inc.'s budget was "a very small percentage."
Legendary guerrilla filmmaker
Roger Corman helped Hurd to deliver the series on time and on budget.
"What I think prepared me for television was my time with Roger Corman, where we neither had time nor money to finish our projects," she said. "Instead of as a negative, though, I've come to see it as a positive thing."
Cast and characters
*
Michael Biehn - Judson Cross
*
Karen Cliche - Mackenzie Previn
*
Jesse Nilsson - Gabriel Patterson
Notable actors appearing
*
Christien Anholt
*
Steve Bacic
*
Noel Clarke
Noel Anthony Clarke (born 6 December 1975) is a British actor, screenwriter, director, and comic book writer. Rising to prominence for playing Mickey Smith in ''Doctor Who'' (2005–2010), he played Sam in the films ''Kidulthood'' (2006), ''Adu ...
*
Vincent Corazza
Vincent Corazza (born December 6, 1972) is a Canadian actor, known for playing the role of Alden Jones in the television series ''Braceface'' and Darien Shields/Tuxedo Mask in the anime ''Sailor Moon''.
Career
Corazza began acting at the age o ...
*
Ellen Dubin
*
Von Flores
*
Charlotte Lucas
*
Lisa Marcos
*
Denis Ménochet
Denis Ménochet (born 18 September 1976) is a French actor. Ménochet is known to international audiences for his role as Perrier LaPadite, a French dairy farmer interrogated by the Nazis for harboring Jews in the 2009 Quentin Tarantino film ...
*
Deborah Odell
*
Eva Pope
*
John Ralston
*
Carlo Rota
*
Alice Taglioni
*
Christopher Villiers
Christopher Francis Villiers (born 7 September 1960) is an English actor, screenwriter and producer.
Biography
Villiers was born in London, the son of Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve Wing commander David Hugh Villiers (1921–1962) and his ...
*
Gary Webster Gary Webster may refer to:
* Gary Webster (actor) (born 1964), English actor
* Gary Webster (engineer), manager of the Toronto Transit Commission in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
* Gary Webster (rugby league) (born 1957), Australian rugby league ...
*
Chris Geere
Christopher William Geere (born 18 March 1981) is an English actor. He is known for playing the lead role of Jimmy Shive-Overly in the FX and FXX dark comedy series ''You're the Worst'' and Roger Clifford in the 2019 film '' Detective Pikachu' ...
Television
The show was first broadcast in the US from 30 September 2002 to 12 May 2003. Despite being a part-UK production, it was never broadcast in the UK until September 2008 (like its stablemate ''
Queen of Swords'') on the
Zone Thriller
Zone Thriller was a television channel in Europe that launched on 3 July 2006. The channel aired a number of varying movie styles including psychological dramas and murder mysteries.
On 14 September 2009, it was revealed that the international ar ...
channel. Again, it was made in widescreen 16/9 but shown in pan and scan 4/3.
The show currently airs on the UK channel
Film24, Sky157 every Friday night as part of 'Action Stations' evening.
Episodes
Production notes
*Filmed in
16:9 but generally broadcast in
4:3 pan and scan.
*Michael Biehn was offered the role after he worked with Gale Anne Hurd on ''
Clockstoppers'' (2002).
*The show has worldwide locations but being a Canadian/United Kingdom/France production, it was filmed firstly in Toronto, Canada; then the cast moved to Bristol, England, and finally to Marseille, France using local
film crews and technicians. The worldwide locations were done by using establishing shots with Toronto standing in for many cities; Bristol stood in for London.
*When filming in Canada, the show used the ship ''Vast Explorer'' and in Marseille ''Janus II''.
*Jesse Nilsson died from pneumonia related heart failure on 25 April 2003 in North York, Ontario Canada before the final episode was broadcast. A tribute was added to the last few frames of said episode: "In memory of Jesse Nilsson 1977–2003." Nilsson's passing led to the cancellation of the series. Like the TV show ''
Kindred: The Embraced'' with
Mark Frankel
Mark David Frankel (13 June 1962 – 24 September 1996) was a British actor, known for his leading roles in the British film '' Leon the Pig Farmer'' and the American TV series '' Kindred: The Embraced''.
Early life
Frankel was born on 13 Jun ...
, this show ended when an actor died unexpectedly.
DVD releases
In Japan the series was released in 2009 on 11 DVDs
NTSC Region 2 with the original English soundtrack, optional dubbed Japanese soundtrack and subtitles and 16:9
aspect ratio. There are two episodes per DVD in no particular episode order.
In Canada,
Alliance Home Entertainment, in April 2011, released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 (Canada only) on a six disc set in episode order with a 16:9 aspect ratio as originally filmed and not the 4:3
pan and scan often broadcast.
References
External links
*
* ''
Adventure Inc.
''Adventure Inc.'' is a dramatised adventure television series produced primarily in Canada which aired from 30 September 2002 to 12 May 2003. It was a co-production of Fireworks Entertainment (Canada), Tribune Entertainment (United States), M6 ...
'' at The TV IV
Space: Adventure Inc.by Michael Fylyshtan, a
steadicam operator on the series
Adventure Inc. program fansite* {{cite magazine , magazine=
Playback
Playback or Play Back may refer to:
Film
* ''Playback'' (1962 film), a British film in the ''Edgar Wallace Mysteries'' series
* ''Playback'', a 1996 film starring Shannon Whirry
* ''Playback'' (2012 film), an American horror film by Michael A. N ...
, title=Tribune and Fireworks embark on Adventure Inc. , url=http://www.playbackonline.ca/articles/magazine/20020708/os.html , accessdate=2007-12-09 , date=8 July 2002 , first=Mark , last=Dillon
Television shows shot in Bristol
2002 Canadian television series debuts
2003 Canadian television series endings
2000s Canadian drama television series
Fictional archaeologists
Treasure hunt television series
Global Television Network original programming
Television series by Tribune Entertainment
British fantasy television series