"You had these three layers of storytelling going on in the show where you had what was happening in the real world on the ship, what was happening in the virtual space and then what was the reality show that was seen back on earth. Were the needs of the reality show starting to impact what was happening on the spacecraft? Were people being manipulated in order to make better drama for the reality show? The astronauts themselves would start to wonder about — are they telling us the truth about what's happening back on Earth or is that something to just get us to be upset for the cameras? It did sort of become this really interesting sort of psychological crucible that they would all be put in."

If "Virtuality" sounds somewhat confusing, well, it is. There's the challenge of setting up the premise and introducing a dozen — actually 13 — characters.

(The cast includes Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Sienna Guillory, James D'Arcy, Ritchie Coster, Erik Jensen, Omar Metwally, Kerry Bishe, Joy Bryant, Nelson Lee, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Gene Farber, Clea Duvall and Jimmi Simpson.)

And as the pilot plays out, it becomes harder and harder to figure out what's real and what's not.

Which is, perhaps, the main reason that Fox executives didn't put "Virtuality" on their 2009-10 schedule.

"It's a very ambitious piece, and I think that was the reaction on the part of Fox when they saw it," Moore said. "It's a very challenging, very complicated piece of work and there are a lot of moving parts."

"Virtuality" starts off slowly, but by the end of the two hours, it is well on its way to a compelling narrative.

But be warned — it doesn't come close to answering any of the questions it raises.

"It certainly does not resolve itself in two hours," Moore said. "I mean, it sets up for a show, so it's got some pretty heavy things that go down in it and kind of leaves you going, 'Whoa! Where is that going?' by the end of it."

And chances are the end of the two-hour pilot will indeed be the end of it.

e-mail: pierce@desnews.com