Pilot season is upon us when the broadcast networks place orders for shows they will be considering for the upcoming season. The pilot introduces the premise and characters for a show, and the network execs review these and sometimes do audience test runs. Then some of the pilots are picked up as new entries for the upcoming season while others might be retooled or dumped. Pilot orders have slowed in recent years as the networks (especially the cable channels) have shifted to more direct-to-series orders. But this time of year still brings a fair number of pilots for shows that the networks are considering. Below is a rundown of the sci fi and fantasy pilots that have been announced by the broadcast networks so far along with my comments on each. Cast information is included as well where available. The descriptions come from The Hollywood Reporter and you can see the full list of 2020 pilots at this link.
[Update: Production on most of the pilots has been shutdown due to the Coronavirus outbreak. More on that at this link.]
ABC
There’s only one genre entry from the alphabet network this year as it continues to shy away from sci fi and fantasy shows. There were talks of a Marvel series in the works for next year, but no pilot has been ordered so it will likely be a Mid-Season entry if it happens.
The Brides
Description: A family drama described as a sexy contemporary reimagining of Dracula. The project revolves around a trio of powerful female leads and features strong horror elements. It’s a vampire soap about empowered, immortal women and the things they do to maintain wealth, prestige, legacy — and their nontraditional family.
Comments: The last thing we need is another supernatural drama, but this one sounds like it could be interesting. It comes from Greg Berlanti who has plenty of experience producing shows with lots of pretty people over on The CW. If he can tap into the epic scope of Julie Plec’s The Originals and bring that over to The Brides, this one might be worth a look.
CBS
CBS continues to stick to its formula of procedurals and sitcoms, though it does have one show that might be of interest to genre fans among its 2020 pilots.
Ghosts
Description: A struggling young couple’s dreams come true when they inherit a beautiful country house, only to find it’s both falling apart and inhabited by many of the deceased previous residents. Based on the British comedy series of the same name.
Comments: CBS knows how to do sitcoms, so maybe this one will be worth a look if they get a decent cast to lead it up. But it likely will only be of marginal interest to sci fi fans.
FOX
FOX currently has no sci fi / fantasy entries on its pilot slate for 2020. The network appears to be trimming down its scripted offerings as it focuses more on sports, reality, and wrestling. This could be the future of the broadcast networks as people turn to streaming and as the Peak TV crunch continues to take its toll.
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NBC
The peacock network has loaded up on sci fi pilots this year with three having strong genre elements and a fourth possibly veering in the direction as well. But of the four that they have in the works right now, expect two at most to get picked up to series as the network already has a crowded schedule and a healthy order of pilots.
Debris
Description: Two agents from two different continents, and two different mindsets, must work together to investigate when wreckage from a destroyed alien spacecraft has mysterious effects on humankind.
Comments: This one comes from Fringe‘s J.H. Wyman which could make it worth a look. The premise seems somewhat limiting for an ongoing series, but they could build on this with an expanded mythology similar to what Wyman’s other series did. Consider me intrigued at this point.
Echo
Description: A high-concept, genre procedural revolving around a team of investigators who solve the highest-profile crimes by sending our heroes into the past … in the body of the victim. They assume the victim’s identity and must race against time to prevent the crime before it happens.
Comments: NBC is trying time travel again, and this time mixing it with procedural elements to make it more Prime Time friendly. The premise sounds interesting, but television rarely does time travel well. I’d be more interested in this one if it was on one of the premium cable channels or streaming services where it could truly explore its potential.
La Brea
Description: When a massive sinkhole mysteriously opens in Los Angeles, it tears a family in half, separating mother and son from father and daughter. When part of the family find themselves in an unexplainable primeval world, alongside a disparate group of strangers, they must work to survive and uncover the mystery of where they are and if there is a way back home.
Comments: Could this be Terra Nova done right? I’m not really sure about this one because the description is a bit sketchy, but it could turn into an interesting sci fi drama if the network execs do not interfere too much.
Langdon
Description: Based on Dan Brown’s international best-selling thriller The Lost Symbol, the drama follows the early adventures of famed Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon (played by Tom Hanks in three feature films), who must solve a series of deadly puzzles to save his kidnapped mentor and thwart a chilling global conspiracy.
Comments: If you count Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon books and movies as sci fi (they have lots of conspiracy themes with a few sci fi elements thrown in), then you may be interested in checking this one out. Expect the TV series to lean more towards procedural stories with less in the way of sci fi because that plays better to Prime Time audiences.
>Keep up with Sci Fi and Fantasy TV shows airing each week with our Weekly Listings.
The CW
As with every year, The CW has quite a number of genre offerings. Two, of course, are Arrow-verse shows and one is a reworking of a prior pilot. But all of these could be of interest to sci fi and fantasy fans.
The Lost Boys
Description: When a mother and her Gen Z sons move to the seaside town where she grew up, they discover there’s a sinister reason the local cool kids sleep all day, party all night, never grow up and never get old. Family bonds are tested as the brothers find themselves on opposite sides of a mythological struggle. Based on the 1987 cult classic that revolutionized how we think about vampires.
Comments: Is the third time a charm? The CW is trying once again to get a Lost Boys series up and running and it surely seems like it would be a good fit with the network’s younger-skewing audience. With Supernatural wrapping up at the end of the season, this male-driven supernatural drama would seem to be the perfect replacement.
Superman & Lois
Description: Follows the world’s most famous super hero and comics’ most famous journalist as they deal with all the stress, pressures and complexities that come with being working parents in today’s society.
Cast: Tyler Hoechlin, Elizabeth Tulloch, Jordan Elsass, Alexander Garfin
Comments: This addition to the Arrow-verse has already received a straight-to-series order, but it may be very different from the other CW superhero shows. Sounds like it will focus more on the relationship between Clark Kent and Lois Lane, a la Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. I have to confess that I have never been a huge fan of the Man of Steel, but I will at least give this one a look.
Arrow spinoff
Description: Spinoff following the women of Arrow: Katherine McNamara’s Mia Smoak/Green Arrow and the Canaries, Katie Cassidy’s Laurel Lance and Juliana Harkavy’s Dinah Drake.
Cast: Katherine McNamara, Katie Cassidy, Juliana Harkavy
Comments: This pilot aired as the episode “Green Arrow & The Canaries” during the final season of Arrow and shows some promise. But with one more Arrow-verse show already joining the network’s schedule (see above), this one might find itself crowded out.
The 100 prequel
Description: Set 97 years before the events of The 100, the drama starts with the end of the world and a nuclear apocalypse that wipes out most of the human population on Earth. It follows a band of survivors on the ground as they learn to cope in a dangerous world while fighting to create a new and better society out of the ashes of what came before.
Cast: Iola Evans, Adain Bradley, Leo Howard
Comments: This pilot will air as an episode in the show’s upcoming final season. Since The CW wants to keep scripted programming on its schedule in the Summer months, this seems like a likely candidate to sub into The 100‘s slot.
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