Vancouver is to host production on JJ Abrams’ Alcatraz-themed pilot for Fox.

The cameras are scheduled to roll in January on the crime thriller TV pilot set in the infamous prison Alcatraz.

A second unit will shoot in San Francisco, where the abandoned Alcatraz prison sits on an island in the middle of the city’s bay and serves as a popular tourist attraction.

The Fox TV pilot is to be produced by Abrams, Bryan Burk and Elizabeth Sarnoff, all of whom produced another island-themed TV series, Lost.

Another Abrams-produced series for Fox, Fringe (pictured), is currently shooting its third season in Vancouver through April 2011.