Thank the Science Channel for passing through all the red tape and enlisting God to narrate the new series, Through the Wormhole, which aims to answer the universe's big questions and elucidate space exploration.

Clearly we don't mean that God — the show's narrator is none other than Morgan Freeman, who has countless times performed the voice of a God character in television programs and movies. Incidentally, the Academy Award winner has a life-long fascination with the cosmos — and he's here with an agenda, as he declares in the first episode, which premiers Wednesday night, "What we're learning is we don't know a lot more than we do know."

The show is the fruit of Freeman's own production company, and represents a coup for Science Channel, which has been attempting to reel in viewers by hiring celebrities with scientific leanings. "Morgan is kind of the everyman," network general manager Debbie Myers says. "He has a love for science, but he's not a scientist."

It's an effort to break down the boring reputation of science television. This fall, Whoopi Goldberg will be hosting a science-related game for the network, and Will Smith will be participating in the Young Scientist Challenge show.

In his signature deity tone, Freeman tackles the hard questions, like what happened before the creation of the universe, what dark matter is doing to the galaxies, whether time travel will someday be possible, what intelligent life might exist beyond Earth, how life on Earth began and the existence of a "creator." On the latter, Freeman expresses skepticism, saying, "It is hard for me to get my mind wrapped around the idea that there is an extra, corporal —shall we say, intelligence — that controls everything."

Morgan shares his intrigue with time travel, explaining, "I'd like to have a destination, and I'd like that destination being a a foreign land where there are things we could possibly communicate with. Just wandering around out there — you might as well be out in the ocean trying to swim." (The 73-year-old Morgan was unavailable for additional comment, as he is reportedly celebrating World Oceans Day with his step granddaughter, E'Dena Hines).