Sci Fi TV Top 5: Covering the top sci fi and fantasy TV stories of interest from the past week. You can keep up with the sci fi and fantasy TV news headlines throughout the week at r/SciFiTV on Twitter and on Reddit.

1. ABC and Marvel Studios Will Team Up on New Series

At the TCAs this week, ABC execs indicated that they are planning to work with Marvel Studios on a new superhero series. ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke had the following to say about the project:

ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke said that she was looking forward to working with Marvel Studios’ president and chief creative officer, but said that they had not discussed which particular characters would be suitable for a broadcast show.

There were plans for an all-female series last year, but ABC did not go forward with that and the new series will likely move in a different direction. Expect more information on this as ABC starts to announce it’s pilots in the coming months.

2. ABC Will Do Young Frankenstein Live!

The alphabet network has announced plans for a live adaptation of the 1974 Mel Brooks film Young Frankenstein. It will be a live musical event that is based on the stage version of the movie which was written by Brooks. The original film was a spoof of the Frankestein movies produced by Universal in the 1930’s. Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, and Teri Garr starred in the film. The cast for Young Frankenstein Live! has not been announced yet and I would expect that it will not hit the schedule until sometime in Fall 2020.

3. The Brides Head to ABC

ABC has picked up a pilot titled The Brides which will focus on the women wedded to the infamous vampire Dracula. Deadline Hollywood gives the following description for the project:

The Brides is a family drama described as a sexy contemporary reimagining of Dracula. The drama revolves around a trio of powerful female leads and features strong horror elements. ABC describes it as a vampire soap about empowered, immortal women and the things they do to maintain wealth, prestige, legacy — and their nontraditional family.

This was previously in development at NBC, but that network passed on it. ABC will be considering this series for its Fall 2020 schedule.

4. More Development News: Willow Sequel Series Kicks Off Production, Blue Beetle Heads to HBO Max

Jon Kasdan has confirmed that production has begun on the previously announced Willow sequel series which is based on the 1988 George Lucas film. Development for the show was announced last year and it will continue on from the story of the original movie with Warwick Davis returning the titular role. An animated Blue Beetle series is allegedly in the works at HBO Max, though there are not many details on the project.

5. The CW Renews All of Its Shows, War of the Worlds Gets a Second Season

Following a similar trend from prior years, The CW announced this week that it was renewing almost all of its shows from the current season, even those that have not premiered like Roswell New Mexico (the only one left off so far is freshman entry Katy Keene which is set for a Mid-Season bow). Arrow-verse entries The Flash, Batwoman, Legends of Tomorrow, and the rest received renewals. And sophomore shows Charmed and Legacies were also renewed as was new series Nancy Drew and its lead-in Riverdale. Arrow, Supernatural, and The 100 were previously announced as heading into their final seasons this year. Also getting renewed is the French adaptation of War of the Worlds which reimagines the H.G. Wells story in modern times. The first season aired in France in Fall 2019 and will premiere on EPIX in the states on February 16th. Be sure to keep up with the status of all of your favorite shows with our Weekly Roundup post.

THE SCHED: Crisis on Infinite Earths Concludes



Mid-Season continues to roll on this coming week as Arrow returns from hiatus and Legends of Tomorrow has its season premiere on Tuesday with both shows hosting the final two installments of the Crisis on Infinite Earths cross-over event. Batwoman and Supergirl also return from hiatus this week as do Nancy Drew, Supernatural, and Charmed. You can see the full schedule of sci fi and fantasy shows at this link and you can keep up with the weekly listings at this link.

>ALSO READ: Top 10 Sci Fi TV Stories of 2019: Marvel TV Closes, The OA Gets Cancelled, the Streaming Wars Heat Up, and More

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