The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
Prequel series following three Gelflings uniting against the Skeksis.
The Jim Henson Company produced *The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance*, an American television series that serves as a prequel to the 1982 film *The Dark Crystal*. Set in the world of Thra, the story follows three young Gelflings—Rian, Deet, and Brea—who embark on a quest to unite their clans against the oppressive Skeksis and stop a destructive force called the Darkening from consuming their planet. The series debuted on Netflix on August 30, 2019, and was met with critical praise. In September 2020, Netflix announced its cancellation after a single season.
The plot centers on the three Gelflings discovering a terrible secret about the Skeksis, whom the Gelflings have long revered as rulers, and this revelation sparks a rebellion that threatens the entire planet.
The main cast includes performers for the Resistance and the Skeksis, with supporting roles for Gelflings, urRu/Mystics, and others. Additional voice work was provided by Warrick Brownlow-Pike, Dave Chapman, Stewart Clarke, Kevin Clash, Alice Dinnean, Barbara Drennan, Damian Farrell, Louise Gold, Beccy Henderson, Isabella Laughland, Omar Malik, Sarah Beck Mather, Jack Myers, Mark Restuccia, Irfan Samji, Helena Smee, Katherine Smee, Neil Sterenberg, Olly Taylor, and Victor Yerrid. Additional puppeteers included Don Austen, Sue Beattie, Mikey Brett, Sarah Burgess, Carl Chadd, Sheila Clark, Marcus Clarke, Richard Coombs, Ronnie Le Drew, Phil Eason, Phil Fletcher, Lesa Gillespie, Andy Heath, Sarah-Jane Honeywell, Steven Kynman, Steve Nallon, Angie Passmore, Colin Purves, Andrew Spooner, Victoria Willing, and Michael Winsor, among others.
A feature-length documentary, *The Crystal Calls – Making The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance*, was released on Netflix on August 30, 2019, directed by Randall Lobb and featuring interviews with cast members including Egerton, Dormer, and Pegg.
The project began as a feature-length sequel called *The Power of the Dark Crystal*, which spent years in development hell. In 2012, director Louis Leterrier, after the release of *Clash of the Titans*, tried to interest large studios in joining Jim Henson Productions but was repeatedly turned down, as studios were only interested in projects like *Transformers* and many executives had never heard of *The Dark Crystal*.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Fantasy-adventure
- Based On
- Characters / by Jim Henson
- Developer
- Jeffrey Addiss / Will Matthews
- Director
- Louis Leterrier
- Starring
- Warrick Brownlow-Pike / Dave Chapman / Kevin Clash / Alice Dinnean / Damian Farrell / Louise Gold / Beccy Henderson / Helena Smee / Katherine Smee / Neil Sterenberg / Victor Yerrid
- Narrator
- Sigourney Weaver
- Composer
- Daniel Pemberton / Samuel Sim
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Num Seasons
- 1
- Num Episodes
- 10
- Budget
- $97.7 million
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The series follows three young Gelflings—Rian, Deet, and Brea—as they journey together to unite the Gelfling clans to rise against the tyrannical Skeksis and save their planet Thra from a destructive blight known as the Darkening. The premise centers on the Gelflings discovering a horrifying secret behind their customarily worshipped rulers, the Skeksis, that threatens their entire planet.
Initially conceived as a feature-length sequel titled The Power of the Dark Crystal, the project spent years in development hell. Director Louis Leterrier, after being turned down by large studios, decided to shoot a prequel series due to the richness of material in Jim Henson and Frank Oz's notes. The project was sold to Netflix after Leterrier found an enthusiastic executive. The series was pitched as animated, but Netflix's Vice President of Original Content Cindy Holland asked about live-action, leading to a 2016 test film that convinced the companies to use puppet characters.
Filming began in the United Kingdom in November 2017, with Leterrier directing and Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews, and Javier Grillo-Marxuach writing. The puppets were fabricated in early 2017 at Jim Henson's Creature Shop in Los Angeles, with Dave Goelz and Brian Froud participating. The series uses 20 principal puppets and 90 for secondary roles; Gelfling puppets require only two puppeteers, and their mechanical parts were remotely operated via modified Wii controllers.
Reader's Guide
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance is significant as a prequel that expands the lore of the original 1982 film, using traditional puppetry combined with modern technology. The series received critical acclaim, holding an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 82 out of 100. Critics praised it as an epic fantasy adventure that builds on the original's mythos while maintaining the humanity at its core. The series was cancelled after one season, despite the showrunners having a concrete document for a second season. Lisa Henson stated the company would look for ways to continue the story in the future. A video game adaptation, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Tactics, was released on February 4, 2020. The series' legacy lies in its demonstration of high-quality puppetry in a streaming-era fantasy production, and its faithful expansion of Jim Henson's created world.
Did You Know?
- All episode titles are quotes from the original 1982 film.
- The Gelfling puppets' mechanical parts were remotely operated via a modified Wii controller.
- The series was initially pitched to Netflix as an animated prequel series before being produced with puppets.
More in American children's fantasy television series 1-24
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