Westworld Is Returning, But It Doesn't Look Like Anything To Me

Westworld is coming back to our screens soon, with Warner Bros. Discovery backing a new movie in the landmark sci-fi franchise about artificial intelligence. The movie will be scripted by David Koepp, whose previous screenwriting credits include Jurassic Park, Mission Impossible, and last year’s acclaimed Steven Soderbergh spy thriller Black Bag.

Before anyone gets too excited, though, it’s important to clarify that this new Westworld movie is unlikely to be a sequel to the four-season HBO series beloved by sci-fi fans. In fact, it’s probably going to rehash the plot of Westworld season 1.

The TV show’s first season is a masterpiece in its own right, so is the last part anyone should want to remake. Instead, Koepp would ideally look to resolve the cliffhanger at the end of season 4, when Dolores circles back to a digital simulation she calls “one last game”, to determine whether consciousness can survive outside the real world.

Either way, HBO’s Westworld managed to bring one of the best tv sci-fi settings in history to the small screen. There’s a danger that if David Koepp and Warner Bros. plough ahead with a reboot without the involvement of the show’s creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, they will end up with something substantially inferior, both visually and conceptually.

Westworld's TV Story Remains Frustratingly Incomplete

Jonathan Nolan expressed hopes of ending Westworld properly in a 2024 interview, since the story he envisioned for the HBO series was cut frustratingly short when it was canceled after season 4. Although there’s an element of finality to the season, with several major characters being killed off, its cliffhanger ending deliberately teases a continuation of the show.

Evan Rachel Wood’s central protagonist, the host Dolores Abernathy, seems as though she’s going to embark on a new existence in the Sublime, a simulated digital utopia designed by the mastermind behind Westworld’s titular theme park. The fact that this twist is designated “one last game” by Dolores anticipates an outcome to the storyline.

There’s no way the writers of the season 4 finale, Nolan and Alison Schapker, would have scripted the character’s closing monologue in this way if they expected it to be the final episode of Westworld. There’s also a suggestion that the “last loop around the bend” intended for season 5 could revive some of the characters previously killed off.

Since Dolores is returning to a simulated version of where Westworld’s story began, she could theoretically create digital versions of those she’s previously encountered from her preexisting memories. Sadly, we may never get to see if this extraordinary Matrix-like vision comes to pass.

The digital fate of consciousness is left hanging by Westworld season 4, and season 5 was axed before it could answer the question Dolores poses with her final lines. Ironically, the Westworld movie that’s just been announced makes a resolution to this cliffhanger less likely than ever.

A Westworld Movie Reboot Feels More Risky Than Season 5 Would Be

Since Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy already have an ending in mind for the TV version of Westworld, it seems like a no-brainer to revive the franchise with a fifth season of the show. Yet, Warner Bros. have decided to go in a different direction entirely, with a reboot of the original 1973 Westworld movie.

Screenwriter David Koepp appears to be the driving force behind this reboot, given his previous connections to franchise creator Michael Crichton, who wrote and directed the first movie. Koepp famously adapted Crichton’s novel Jurassic Park for the screen, so is well placed to update the author’s best-known work as a film director.

There’s also a big-name filmmaker in line to join the project, and fans are already speculating that the name in question is Steven Spielberg. It was Spielberg who brought Kroepp’s Jurassic Park script to the screen, and the pair have worked together on numerous other movies, including Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, and Spielberg’s upcoming alien movie Disclosure Day.

Whoever the director turns out to be, though, they’re taking a big risk remaking the original Westworld, rather than continuing the TV series. It looks as though this new movie could effectively be in direct competition with the HBO show to be the definitive version of the franchise’s story.

What Can A Westworld Movie Do That The TV Show Didn't?

If this new big-screen Westworld is indeed a reboot of the original story, it’s difficult to imagine what it could bring to the table that the TV show hasn’t already. Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy’s HBO series updated the story-world of Michael Crichton’s first movie with breathtaking visual wizardry and forward-thinking conceptual realism.

A decade on from its first season, there’s very little that could be added to the show in terms of production values. What’s more, it’s hard to envisage even David Kroepp telling Westworld’s story better than the initial episodes of the TV series.

On the other hand, if the movie were to replace Westworld’s planned season 5 ending on its own terms, but in a way consistent with the events and characterizations of the show, it might be something that viewers can get onboard with. Unfortunately, it looks set to be just another reimagining of the franchise’s basic premise.

Another Westworld Movie Would Be The Final Nail For HBO's TV Show

One thing a new Westworld movie essentially guarantees is that a fifth season of the HBO series can never happen. Once pre-production begins on this movie, Warner Bros. will have reset the dial on the franchise, even calling into question the TV show’s place in its official canon.

HBO already took a big step in this direction by removing Westworld from its Max streaming platform after the show was canceled. There are those who likely aren’t so disappointed that the TV version’s legacy is being diminished in this manner. Many fans believe Westworld was already ruined as a small-screen masterpiece by the plot-heavy mess of its later seasons.

Nevertheless, it’s one thing to cancel the show and remove it from HBO Max, but it’s another entirely to override it as screen canon. Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy’s Westworld will be dead and buried if David Koepp’s movie reboot makes it into theaters without their involvement.