Freeform's upcoming Marvel series Cloak and Dagger is on track to premiere in Winter 2018 and may air alongside their recently announced New Warriors and Squirrel Girl show. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has greatly expanded in recent years; Marvel Studios has 14 films under their belt, and the TV division has also grown to include four series on Netflix - Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist, with two more upcoming - ABC's The Avengers spinoff Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. as well as the forthcoming IMAX series The Inhumans. Plus, Marvel TV has even more shows in various stages of development including Hulu's Runaways and Freeform's Cloak and Dagger as well as the New Warriors series.

Freeform ordered Cloak and Dagger to series in the spring of last year, but very little was heard about the project until November, when the network quietly revealed the show was expected to debut in 2018 and a showrunner had been set in Joe Pokaski (Daredevil, Underground). Earlier this year, Cloak and Dagger cast its leads and began production on the pilot episode, to be directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood. Now, the network reveals when their first Marvel series is expected to debut.

In an interview with THR discussing the New Warriors series order at Freeform, the network's executive vice president of programming and development, Karey Burke, discussed when fans can expect each show will debut and whether they'll air alongside each other. In response to whether Cloak and Dagger is on track for a 2018, debut, Burke said:

Yes, still winter 2018 for Cloak and Dagger. But that's not a bad idea. We're modeling schedules now as we head into the upfront [on April 19]. That is one alternative. Or we may stick with a comedy night and a drama night as originals that we're doing now. Or we could not pair them together and have a Marvel comedy on the comedy night and Cloak and Dagger as part of the drama night.

It was recently revealed that Freeform granted Cloak and Dagger season 1 a 10 episode order, and with Burke's comments we can presume that season will debut early in 2018 and run throughout the first few months of the year. Production on the Cloak and Dagger pilot wrapped late in February and it's unclear whether filming will resume on the subsequent nine episodes soon, or closer to the show's expected premiere timeframe.

Of course, Winter 2018 is a long time away for fans that have been looking forward to Freeform's Cloak and Dagger series since it was first announced last year. The characters have long been a fan favorite suggestion to get the live-action treatment and fans will finally see it happen when Tandy Bowen aka Dagger (Olivia Holt) and Ty Johnson aka Cloak (Aubrey Joseph) come to life on the Marvel series. Given the powers of the two main characters, though, Freeform and Marvel may need plenty of time to get the visual effects readied for the show's full first season.

Still, Burke's comments make it clear that the network is determined to move forward on both Cloak and Dagger and New Warriors, building out their Marvel programming. Whether either series finds an audience on the younger-skewing Freeform network remains to be seen, but fans excited for the YA superhero shows will get to see Cloak and Dagger premiere early next year.

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Cloak and Dagger is expected to premiere Winter 2018 on Freeform.

Source: THR