Once Upon a Time in Space is a 2026 four-part PBS and BBC series discussing the history of human spaceflight, from the Space Shuttle era to modern day. It focuses largely on the relationship between Russia and the United States during that time. The show touches on the Space Shuttle program, the Mir space station, the building of the International Space Station, and the rise of commercial spaceflight. The story also discusses the impact of geopolitics, racism, and sexism on human spaceflight. It is directed by James Bluemel and includes interviews and footage of astronauts, cosmonauts, NASA employees, and family members.
Cast The cast includes:
Astronauts: Charlie Bolden Anna Lee Fisher Bill Fisher Michael Foale Jerry Linenger Mike Mullane Dan Tani Terry Virts
Cosmonauts: Sergei Zalyotin Sasha Lazutkin
Others: Ginger Kerrick, former NASA flight director Carl McNair, brother of American astronaut Ronald McNair, who was killed in the Challenger accident Robert Opel, rocket enthusiast
Episodes
Production Bluemel focused on emphasizing the human and emotional aspect of the story; he felt that astronauts are often perceived as "superhuman", and wanted to see a more vulnerable side of them. He also wanted to include the Russian side of the story just as much as the American side in this aspect—both the American astronauts and the Russian cosmonauts discuss the impact of their spaceflights on their domestic lives, and their families are interviewed.
Bluemel noted that getting the cosmonauts to interview was one of the biggest challenges he faced on the project. The ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war and Russia-United States relations made it difficult to get cosmonauts to agree and to find a way that they could interview. Ultimately, the production team and the Russian cosmonauts met in a neutral country to interview.
Reception Jack Seale of The Guardian gave Once Upon a Time in Space a 4/5 star review, calling Bluemel's focus on interviews "a technique more radical than it sounds". Seale also noted that the series was "restrained and domestic", rather than "expansive and majestic" as one might expect from a documentary about space.
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