FUTURE MAN: PILOT {SERIES PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
The first in this sci-fi comedy/action series about a lowly janitor who finds himself hurtling through time when his favorite video game proves all too real. In this episode, in December 2017, twentysomething Josh Futterman enjoys a dream in which he is "Future Man," a suave futuristic soldier determined to save the world from dangerous "biotics." Upon awakening, he heads to the electronics store and is teased by the employees, as usual, about his severe crush on "Tiger," the game's strong and attractive main character, and his pointless fixation with the apparently "unbeatable" game. Josh then heads to his custodial job at Kronish Labs, where he indulges in his "unhealthy obsession" in between disgusting clean-up jobs, and when Dr. Stu Camillo rudely insults him for his mistakes, he is rescued by the renowned Dr. Elias Kronish himself, who explains that he has spent decades searching for a cure for herpes after contracting the lifelong infection at a raucous Cal Tech "moon landing" party.
Back at home, Josh laments his aimless life and depressing job, though his relentlessly cheerful parents assure him that he can "do anything" he desires. Josh retreats into his video game and, after employing a new strategy, is overjoyed when he finally beats level 83 and is deemed "the savior" of humanity. Later, however, he is shocked when Tiger and her sidekick Wolf actually appear in his bedroom and inform him that they have traveled back from 2162 to retrieve him, as he is the only person to ever beat the game, which is in fact a real-life warrior recruitment tool. Josh, sure that they are simply actors, is astonished when Tiger and Wolf transport him back to 1969, and he is forced to ward off his own teenage father and angry grandparents, who mistake him for a drug-seeking hippie burglar. Tiger is angry to realize that he has no fight skills whatsoever and that in 2017, video games are mere nerdy escapism, not a training program for "elite soldiers." When Josh tells them to "blend in," the duo violently attacks a gang of bikers, though Josh frantically reminds them that "killing is wrong."
At a diner, Tiger is furious to realize that she has made great sacrifices to retrieve a useless "hero," but when she and Wolf reveal that Dr. Kronish's medical research in fact led to cures for "all diseases" and spawned the biotics, Josh realizes that it is July 20th, the day of the moon landing, and that they must prevent Kronish from ever contracting herpes in order to save the future. Josh is shocked when Wolf casually blows up a police car, but Tiger simply welcomes him "to the revolution" as they ride off.
Details
- NETWORK: Hulu
- DATE: November 30, 1999
- RUNNING TIME: 0:29:21
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 130444
- GENRE: Comedy, fantasy/science fiction
- SUBJECT HEADING: Comedy, fantasy/science fiction; Video games; Action/Adventure; Time travel
- SERIES RUN: Hulu - Internet series, 2017-
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Matt Tolmach … Executive Producer
- James Weaver … Executive Producer
- Ben Karlin … Executive Producer
- Seth Rogen … Executive Producer, Director
- Evan Goldberg … Executive Producer, Director
- Kyle Hunter … Executive Producer, Created by, Writer
- Ariel Shaffir … Executive Producer, Created by, Writer
- Josh Hutcherson … Producer
- Mychelle Deschamps … Producer
- Alex Espinoza … Associate Producer
- Christa Tazzeo Morson … VFX Producer
- George Macri … VFX Producer
- Howard Overman … Created by, Writer
- Halli Cauthery … Music by
- Josh Hutcherson … Cast, Josh Futterman
- Eliza Coupe … Cast, Tiger
- Derek Wilson … Cast, Wolf
- Ed Begley Jr. … Cast, Gabe Futterman
- Glenne Headly … Cast, Diane Futterman
- Keith David … Cast, Dr. Elias Kronish
- Britt Lower … Cast, Jeri
- Haley Joel Osment … Cast, Dr. Stu Camillo
- Ron Funches … Cast, Ray
- Paul Scheer … Cast, Man at Video Game Store
- Awkwafina (see also: Nora Lum) … Cast, Woman at Video Game Store
- Patrick Carlyle … Cast, Young Skarsgaard
- Mary Manofsky … Cast, Grandma
- Emily Hinkler … Cast, Dr. Benson
- Dennis Keiffer … Cast, Lead Biker
- Drew James … Cast, Young Gabe
- Jason Scott Jenkins … Cast, Carl
- Megan Suri … Cast, Daughter
- Kyler Adam Martin … Cast, Little Boy
- Kavi Ladnier … Cast, Mom
- Holger Moncada Jr. … Cast, Santiago