Taking you behind the scenes on the classic Quantum Leap and inside the career of a TV trailblazer, Deborah M. Pratt: Uplifting Women in Film & TV is an unmissable interview and Q&A hosted by presenter Sophie K.
Over the incredible 133-minute extended video (available for you to watch below), Deborah discussed her career, the surprising influence of cult classic Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone on her career as a writer, and how she came across an early copy of the Star Wars script… and put her name forward for the role of Princess Leia.
One of the earliest female showrunners in science fiction, Deborah M. Pratt became the first African-American Executive Producer working in TV when she co-created Quantum Leap. She wrote 25 episodes and co-wrote another 15 of the classic sci-fi show, breaking ground with compassionate and confrontational storylines that tackled everything from civil rights to gender equality.
Sophie K (Absolute Radio, Kerrang! Radio, BBC Radio 1) commented:
Quantum Leap has long been one of my favorite shows, as a kid, I watched it because it was fun and cool and as an adult, I am blown away by how progressive and wholesome it is.
Watch Deborah M. Pratt: Uplifting Women in Film & TV right here
Deborah is returning to Quantum Leap as Executive Producer for the new show, currently in the pilot stage at NBC starring Raymond Lee (Kevin Can F**k Himself), Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters, The Crow), and Mason Alexander Park (The Sandman, Cowboy Bebop).
Her fellow Executive Producer, showrunner Bryan Wynbrandt (whose previous credits include Gotham and co-creating the JJ Abrams’ produced mystery drama Alcatraz for Fox) posted a photo to his Instagram profile of Deborah, director and Hollywood icon Helen Shaver (Snowpiercer, Orphan Black), and himself with the show’s incredible cast:
Did Deborah talk about the new show? You BET she did…
Deborah M. Pratt Offers an Update on the new Quantum Leap
“I have to go to [Showrunners] Steven Lillian and Bryan Wynbrandt to say that I think they captured, first of all, the fact that Raymond Lee who was South Korean is playing Doctor Seong […] I think that that’s a huge step forward that will bring in more global storylines. But again, I can’t tell you his backstory and all that kind of stuff. But the episode is a true Quantum Leap episode, and it’s an homage to the series in that sense. The characters that they have created for the show, I feel like are strong and interesting.”
Moving onto the opportunities offered by the new series, she continues: “Everything that Star Trek could do, Quantum Leap can do. I think we should do a series of movies, I think we should do a series of series, and this is very much the first step into that world.
“They had a lot more money than we did. Oh my God. So they got to play on a whole other level. That I think is beautiful in the sense that… and Ziggy is there. So that’s really cool. Ziggy Quantum Computer 2.0.”
For more on the incredible Deborah M. Pratt, she previously took The Companion’s Cat Davies inside the classic episode ‘What Price Gloria?’ (S2, Ep4) in which Sam leaps into the body of a woman for the first time, and gave us an interview on her career and some of the walls she had to break down to on the road.
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