The long-gestating TV adaptation of Image Comics’ Revival has found its stars. On Wednesday, it was announced that Melanie Scrofano (Wynonna Earp, Designated Survivor), Romy Weltman (Slasher, Murdoch Mysteries), David James Elliott (JAG, Mad Men) and Andy McQueen (Mrs. Davis) have all joined the cast of Revival in major roles. The series, which is based on Time Seeley and Mike Norton’s Image Comics series of the same name, is now beginning production in New Brunswick, Canada.
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Scrofano will play Dana, who is described as “constantly having to prove her worth to a stubborn sheriff, who just so happens to be her father. And just when she is about to leave her small town for good, the events of Revival Day change that, instead sending her into her most important case to date.” Elliott will play Wayne Cypress, the longtime Wausau sheriff who is “determined to keep his town and family as normal and safe as possible — a tall order when the dead return to life in the small town he’s sworn to protect.” Weltman will play Martha “Em” Cypress, the sheriff’s younger daughter who, “having led a very sheltered life due to a recurring illness, is still figuring out her place in the world. A world that for her in particular, is now turned upside down.” McQueen will play Ibrahim Ramin, scientist from the Center for Disease Control “who has been stationed in Wausau to study the bizarre phenomenon that brought people back to life.”
Revival is just the latest comic book adaptation to find a home at Syfy, after the cable network has launched shows based off of Dark Horse’s Resident Alien, IDW’s Wynonna Earp, DC’s Krypton, Vault’s Vagrant Queen, and Image’s Deadly Class. The Revival series joins Syfy’s current and upcoming slate of programming, which includes new seasons of The Ark, SurrealEstate, and Reginald the Vampire.
What Is Revival About?
Revival is set on one miraculous day in rural Wisconsin when the recently deceased suddenly rise from their graves. But this is no zombie story as the “revived” appear and act just like they once were. When local Officer and single mother Dana Cypress is unexpectedly thrown into the center of a brutal murder mystery of her own, she’s left to make sense of the chaos amidst a town gripped by fear and confusion where everyone, alive or undead, is a suspect.
“I’m excited to try and create an environment for this mystery we’ve built,” Norton said in a statement when the series first launched. “[Colorist] Mark [Englert] and I are working hard to set a mood that hopefully sets the reader on edge. I couldn’t be happier with how this is turning out.”
Will There Be a Revival Movie?
An adaptation of Revival has been in the works essentially ever since the comic first made its debut, but did not make it to fruition. A film adaptation was announced to be in the works at 2017’s Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo, co-written by Seeley and directed by Luke Boyce, with a proof of concept teaser trailer even being shown at the event.
“I am beyond ecstatic to be bringing this incredible work to life. Revival has consistently been one of the best titles from Image in the past few years and one of my absolute favorites since it debuted in 2012,” Boyce said at the time. “Long before I ever met Tim and Mike, I dreamed of being able to adapt this story on film and I intend to do everything I can to realize it to its full potential.”
