Seth MacFarlane to star in futuristic live-action dramedy for Fox

Fox is staying in the Seth MacFarlane business.

The network announced Wednesday that it has ordered 13 episodes of a new comedic drama created and executive produced by the Emmy-winning mind behind “Family Guy” and “Ted.”

But in a noteworthy twist, MacFarlane will also star in the as yet untitled, hourlong, live-action series, which is set 300 years in the future aboard the Orville, “a not-so-top-of-the-line exploratory ship in Earth’s interstellar Fleet.”

“Seth has one of the most original voices -- in every sense of the word -- and we’ve been waiting for him to bring us a project as special as this one,” said Fox Television chief executives Dana Walden and Gary Newman in a statement, describing the series as “classic Seth -- fresh and funny, incredibly smart, wickedly subversive.”

The network’s long-standing partnership with MacFarlane dates back to the premiere of “Family Guy” in 1999. The animated series is in its 13th season and has been renewed through the 2016-17 season.

MacFarlane has also been involved as a co-creator or executive producer on the animated series “American Dad!,” “The Cleveland Show” and “Bordertown,” and on the documentary “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey,” all for Fox.

The network currently plans to air the new series in the 2017-18 season.

Twitter: @MeredithBlake