James Head Movies

Lee is appointed to investigate a black-market operation within the fleet after the Pegasus commander is found murdered in his quarters with a cache of cigarettes, liquor and jewelry. ~ Michael Chant, All Movie Guide

Filmed under the title "The Hunt for Osama," this episode finds Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) joining the ranks of other psychics like himself in a covert U.S. counter-terrorist organization. For his first assignment, Johnny joins a "remote-viewing" operation to track down a dangerous fugitive terrorist, who though not identified by name bears a striking resemblance to a certain Afghanistan-based Muslim extremist leader. Originally scheduled to air on March 30, 2003, "The Hunt" was bumped back to July 27, presumably (and ironically) by cable TV's round-the-clock coverage of the Iraq war. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While trying to escape his adoring fans, Johnny (Anthony Michael Hall) experiences a horrifying vision: himself vanishing into nothingness after making contact with an as-yet-determined item. Soon afterward, Johnny meets a reclusive stranger, Jeffrey Grissom (Robert Culp), who has had a similar psychic vision -- and who promptly disappears as though he never existed. In his efforts to prove that Grissom is not a figment of his imagination (and, hopefully, to save himself from a similar fate), Johnny stumbles upon an elaborate governmental cover up. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Ethel Lina White's suspense novel Some Must Watch was first filmed under the title The Spiral Staircase in 1946. This same title was applied to a subsequent 1962 TV special adaptation, and a 1975 British TV-movie remake. The Spiral Staircase resurfaced again in 2000 as a made-for-cable feature film, which updated the original story from the early 20th century to the present day. Pathologically mute since a terrible trauma in her youth, Helen Capel (Nicollette Sheridan) works as a housekeeper in the gloomy old mansion of wealthy Emma Warren (Holland Taylor). By nature timid and frightened, Helen has good reason of late to be even more afraid to venture outside the Warren home: A serial killer who preys upon "imperfect" women is on the loose, with such victims as a blind girl and a clubfooted woman in his wake. Understandably, the literally speechless Helen is worried that she will be the next victim. What she doesn't know is that her would-be murderer is someone living within the walls of the Warren mansion -- and it isn't the most obvious suspect. The Spiral Staircase debuted April 2, 2000 on the Fox Family Channel. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Having been discredited by a "miscalculation" during a manned space flight in the 1960s, elderly astronaut Theodore Harris (Cliff Robertson) is given a chance to redeem himself nearly 40 years later. Taking over the controls of a brand-new passenger starship, Harris pilots the vessel into unchartered space, hoping to revisit the area where he had suffered the mishap that ruined his reputation. In his efforts to restore his good name, Harris endangers the lives of the vessel's terrified passengers -- none of whom have any idea why the ship has suddenly and dramatically gone off course. "Joyride" originally aired on February 26, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

This episode takes place on a tiny neutral planetoid, where delegates from the warring planets Earth and Dregocia -- both populated by humans -- have convened for a summit conference. At first the conference is peaceful, but an abrupt act of violence, which may or may not be the result of sabotage, results in the destruction of both planets. The future of humanity -- or what is left of it -- now rests in the hands of two mortal enemies: earthling Kate Woods (Marcia Cross) and Dregocian ambassador Prosser (Michael Ironside). "Summit" first aired on May 21, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this sequel to the 1995 Outer Limits episode "Valerie 23" (including excerpts from the earlier program), the scientists at Innobotics Corporation are still smarting from the disaster caused by their development of a female android with human emotions (including jealousy). Thus, when inventor Charlie Bouton (Tom Butler) develops a "robot nanny" named Mary 25 (Sofia Shinas), Innobotics refuses to bankroll him. Hoping to prove that his invention is viable, Bouton decides to test Mary 25 with his own children -- resulting in a potentially catastrophic situation with Bouton's wife Teryl (Cynthia Geary). "Mary 25" was originally broadcast on May 29, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Another in a handful of remade episodes from the original Outer Limits series of the 1960s, Nightmare was based on a program which originally aired on December 2, 1963. The elite multicultural crew of the military space cruiser Tango Bravo is captured by Ebonite aliens. One by one, the crew members are forced to endure a hellish interrogation, conducted by an unseen voice. Curiously, the Ebonites seem to know the unique psychological weaknesses of each crewperson -- but no one knows where the interrogation will lead, nor what will ultimately happen to the captives. Dedicated to the late Outer Limits creator Leslie Stevens, the "new" version of "Nightmare" was first shown on August 14, 1998. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide