The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown much of the entertainment industry into uncharted territory, as social distancing guidelines have put live-action productions on hold for the foreseeable future. With a lot of uncertainty about what the months ahead could hold, some networks appear to be taking proactive measures to set up buzzworthy programming for the fall 2020 season. Earlier today, it was announced that Fox has acquired the broadcast rights to Bad Boys spinoff L.A.’s Finest — and it looks like The CW has similar plans. According to a report from Variety, the network has acquired broadcast rights for four series, including DC Universe’s Swamp Thing. The network also has secured the rights to air Tell Me a Story, which originated on CBS All Access, as well as Canadian series Coroner and British series Dead Pixels. Premiere dates for these four shows have not yet been announced.
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The Swamp Thing of it all is particularly interesting, especially given the road that the DC Comics-inspired series took to get to the small screen. The series was canceled just days after its series premiere, reportedly due to a financial error tied to the series’ production in North Carolina. The entire thirteen-episode season ultimately debuted on DC Universe last summer. The titular character ended up having a brief cameo in The CW’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover last December, establishing that the show’s universe exists within the rebuilt TV multiverse. This isn’t the first DC Universe series that has also made its way onto The CW, with new series Stargirl set to debut on both platforms next week.
Swamp Thing follows Dr. Abby Arcane (Crystal Reed) as she investigates what seems to be a deadly swamp-born virus in a small town in Louisiana. However, when a mysterious creature emerges from the murky marsh, she finds herself facing the nightmares of a supernatural world where no one is safe. The series also stars Virginia Madsen, Andy Bean, Henderson Wade, Derek Mears, Maria Sten, and Jeryl Prescott.
Tell Me a Story takes the world’s most beloved fairy tales and reimagines them as a dark and twisted psychological thriller. Set in modern-day New York City, the first season of this serialized drama interweaves “The Three Little Pigs,” “Little Red Riding Hood” and “Hansel and Gretel” into an epic and subversive tale of love, loss, greed, revenge and murder. The series spanned two seasons on CBS All Access, but has reportedly been canceled.
Coroner is a character-driven one-hour drama about Dr. Jenny Cooper (Serinda Swan), a recently widowed, newly appointed coroner who investigates any suspicious, unnatural or sudden deaths in Toronto.Each death brings Jenny into a new arena in the city and sparks buzzworthy themes.
Dead Pixels follows Meg (Alexa Davies), Nicky (Will Merrick) and Usman (Sargon Yelda), who are obsessed with the online fantasy game “Kingdom Scrolls.” Meg would happily cut a date short to go home and defend Castle Blackfinger. Nicky thinks the miscasting of Vince Vaughn as Tanadaal in the “Kingdom Scrolls” movie is an international outrage. And Usman has made a plywood lid for his child’s playpen, so he can play the game in peace. The series is split equally between the characters’ tragicomic real lives and their computer-animated misadventures in “Kingdom Scrolls.”
What do you think of The CW’s plans to air Swamp Thing, Tell Me a Story, and more? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
