Western (genre) space who use ray guns and ride robotic horses. Examples include the American television series "Brave Starr" (which aired original episodes from September 1987 to February 1988) and "Firefly" (created by Joss Whedon in 2002), and the films "Battle Beyond the Stars" (1980), which is a remake of "The Magnificent Seven"; "Outland" (1981), which is a remake of "High Noon"; and "Serenity" (2005, based on the "Firefly" TV series). The classic western genre has also been a major influence on science fiction films such as the original "" movie of 1977. Famously Gene Roddenberry pitched the concept of the TV
Warren Ellis would be writing every episode. In 2006, Ellis was hired to develop a science-fiction television series for AMC titled "Dead Channel", but the project was put on hiatus. The series followed a television network executive who discovers the existence of aliens and decides to turn the discovery into a reality show. "Listener", a near-future science fiction novel, was planned as Ellis' next book after "Crooked Little Vein." The novel has since been lost and cancelled. "Wastelanders", a web-based "end-of-the-world" collaboration with director Joss Whedon, was postponed due to Whedon's work on "The Avengers". Ellis and British producer Vivek Tiwary developed