‘Judge Dredd: Mega City One’ TV Pilot Is Written, Script Finished & Ready To Be Produced

The much-anticipated return of Mega City One’s most notoriously bad-ass law enforcement officer, Judge Dredd, is one step closer to completion with the latest news that the Dredd TV project has a completed pilot script, according to Screenrant.

The creators of the project, tentatively titled Judge Dredd: Mega City One, were speaking to an energetic crowd assembled at San Diego Comic-Con today when they revealed the big news — veteran 2000AD writer Rob Williams had completed the spec script for the television pilot episode of the new Dredd property. Williams is in charge of leading the creative team fielding the series, which is, at this point, expected to debut sometime next year.

That’s not all — Rebellion, owners of the Judge Dredd intellectual property according to Comicbook.com, have stated that the first two years of action has also been plotted out, arcs at the ready to satisfy fans of the near-future dystopia of the eponymous metropolis that is Mega City One. While of course, Judge Dredd would be the central character, the creators and producers of the show have been keen to point out that the television iteration will host an ensemble cast featuring other characters, other judges, and other nefarious villains both familiar and unfamiliar to established fans of the franchise.

Comic writer Rob Williams has completed 'Judge Dredd' pilot script https://t.co/PcmbtRQl2l pic.twitter.com/a4d2VeiYQw

— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) July 22, 2018

The law enforcement supermen and women holding the title of “Judge” in this portrait of the future are judge, jury, and executioner amalgamated as one — dispensing strict and often violent judges to the unfortunate criminals of a fictional 22nd century filled with poverty, despair, and corruption. Dredd, perhaps the most brutal of them all, yet possessed of a personal code of honor common to antihero archetypes, is the most famous — or infamous — of them all.

The big question on most fans’ minds is whether or not Karl Urban, the man who played the stoic and lethal Judge Dredd in the last film sojourn of the character in 2012, would return to lend his talent to the production. While 2012’s Dredd was ultimately unsuccessful at the box office, it received a deluge of critical acclaim and achieved cult classic status in the minds of many action fans following its release, according to both sources quoted herein, with Urban receiving the lion’s share of the applause for what many consider to be his accurate portrayal of the character on-screen.

For his part, Karl Urban seems receptive to the idea, having stated his interest to return to the role on multiple occasions, having related as much to Comicbook.com in the past.

“I told them, if they write some great material for Dredd, and give him a real purpose and a function, that I would love to come back and be a part of it… So, let’s see what they do.”

One of the major producers involved with Judge Dredd: Mega City One, Mr. Brian Jenkins, seems inclined to agree.

“It’s too early to tell yet, but if we can use him and he’s available to us, then I think that would be absolutely brilliant. There’s always a possibility he will be busy, or that his schedule for other movies won’t allow- Basically, we don’t know at this stage.”

With or without Karl Urban — although hopefully the former — the project will move ahead as planned into full production, the gritty cityscape that is Mega City One being brought to life at least one more time to satisfy long-standing fans of the character who has roots spanning all the way back to the 1970s.