The CW has given five of its previously announced new pilots full series commissions- including Arrow, based on DC Comics' superhero Green Arrow, Sex and the City prequel The Carrie Diaries, and a modern reboot of the 80s Beauty and the Beast TV show.
Read on for the descriptions of the new CW TV series:
ARROW
Billionaire playboy Oliver Queen returns home to Starling City after five years of being marooned on a remote island in the Pacific following a deadly yacht crash. Forever changed by his traumatic ordeal, Queen now seeks to make amends for his checkered past by becoming the bow-wielding vigilant Arrow - and by restoring the declining Starling City to its former glory. Queen’s new extra-curricular activities will put him in conflict with those he loves, including his mother Moria and his sister Thea, who are beginning to realize something is different about him - as well as the Starling police who are hell-bent on bringing the fledgling vigilante to justice.
The series stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, Colin Donnell as his best friend Tommy, Katie Cassidy as Queen’s former girlfriend Laurel Lance, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Willa Holland as Thea Queen, with Susanna Thompson as Moira Queen and Paul Blackthorne as Detective Quentin Lance. The show has Greg Berlanti (Green Lantern) and Marc Guggenheim (Eli Stone) locked in as co-executive producers.
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THE CARRIE DIARIES
Based on the novels “The Carrie Diaries” and “Summer and the City” by Candace Bushnell, The Carrie Diaries centers on a 16-year-old Carrie Bradshaw, who longs to break free of the ennui of her 1980s suburban Connecticut life. After her mother dies her father Tom is overwhelmed with the sudden responsibility of raising two teenage girls solo - and her rebellious little sister Dorritt is not making things any easier. Life for Carrie is tolerable due to her friends Maggie and Walt - and sexy new transfer student Sebastian adds a bit of much-needed spice, but everything changes when Carrie takes an internship at a prestigious Manhattan law firm. Moving to the big city gives young Carrie new-found freedom - and when she meets Larissa, the glamorous style editor for Interview magazine, Carrie is soon immersed into the dazzling New York fashion world and unique club culture.
Actress AnnaSophia Robb (Soul Surfer) stars as Carrie Bradshaw with Austin Butler (Switched at Birth) as Sebastian Kydd, Katie Findlay (Stargate Universe) as Maggie Landers, Stefania Owen (The Lovely Bones) as Dorrit Bradshaw, Brendan Dooling (An Elf’s Story: The Elf on the Shelf) as Walt Reynolds, Freema Agyeman (Doctor Who, Law & Order: UK) as Larissa and Matt Letscher (Brothers & Sisters) as Tom Bradshaw. In association with Warner Bros. Television, Amy B. Harris(Sex and the City), Josh Schwartz (Hart of Dixie), will executive produce along with Bushnell.
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BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
After witnessing the murder of her mother at the hands of two gunmen, Catherine Chandler grows up to become a smart tough-as-nails homicide detective. What drives Catherine is the fact that on the night her mother was killed she was saved by someone… or something. Officially documented as an animal attack, no one believes Catherine when she tells them it’s not that simple. While investigating a murder, Catherine is led to a doctor named Vincent Keller, who was reportedly killed years ago in Afghanistan. Discovering Vincent alive is not the only secret Catherine must keep: when enraged, he becomes a savage beast, with no control over his strength. Bonding together, the two work together to not only protect the streets but to solve the case of Catherine’s mother’s murder.
The series stars Kristin Kreuk (Smallville) as Catherine and Jay Ryan (Terra Nova) as Vincent with Max Brown (The Tudors,) as Evan, Nina Lisandrello (Nurse Jackie) as Tess. Beauty and the Beast is being produced by CBS Television Studios with executive producers Jennifer Levin (Without A Trace), Sherri Cooper (Brothers and Sisters) and Bill Haber (Rizzoli & Isles)
Also joining Arrow, The Carrie Diaries and Beauty and the Beast this fall on the CW are:
FIRST CUT
Former high school nerd Emily Barnes (Mamie Gummer) receives a coveted first-year internship working with world-famous cardiologist Dr. Gina Beckett (Necar Zadegan) at Denver Memorial Hospital - where she’ll also work with her med-school crush the hunky Will Rider (Justin Hartley). Life would be roses for Emily if only her old high school nemesis, the gorgeous and popular Cassandra Kopelson, (Aja Naomi King) wasn’t working there too. This new development leaves the geeky Emily forced to save lives all while navigating the ER equivalent of Mean Girls.
The series also stars Michael Rady as the nerdy-but-cute resident Micah and Kelly McCreary as fellow intern Tyra Granger. First Cut comes from CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television with executive producers Jennie Snyder Urman (90210) and Dan Jinks (Pushing Daisies).
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CULT
Investigative journalist Jeff Sefton (Matt Davis) delves deep into the mysterious and dark underworld of a TV show called “Cult” following his brother Nate’s disappearance. With the help of show-insider Skye (Jessica Lucas) a young research assistant, Jeff investigates the growing number of suspicious macabre happenings surrounding the show and the strange occurrence of hardcore fans taking their devotion to new and sinister levels in the real world.
The series also stars as Alona Tal (Supernatural) as Kelly Collins and Robert Knepper (Prison Break) as Billy Grimm and comes from Fake Empire with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios. Rockne S. O’Bannon (Farscape), Josh Schwartz (Chuck and Gossip Girl) and Stephanie Savage (Hart of Dixie) attached as executive producers.
So there you have it, a quick sampling of what you can expect from the CW this fall. While the announcement of new television series can be exciting - with five new shows, it doesn’t give much hope to those current series like Nikita and Hart of Dixie that haven’t received renewals yet.
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Check back for more info on the new CW shows as well as the ones that have yet to be renewed.
Source: TV Line