All aboard the hype train! The ultimate guide to TV pilot season 2018
Spring time means new beginnings and what better way to celebrate the opener to summer than by taking a look at all the awesome new shows we’re going to be treated to in the 2018-19 TV season? We’re buzzing about the sheer variety of broadcast pilots as they go through filming, editing, screenings, and testing. Here’s the ultimate guide to the most talked about pilots so far (which Deadline warns should be “taken with a grain of salt” – it is only April, after all.) Either way, looks like there’s going to be a lot of new content to enjoy when these pilots roll round – all aboard the hype train!
ABC
The Rookie
Starring Titus Makin Jr. (Pretty Little Liars), Alyssa Diaz (Red Dawn), and Nathan Fillion (Firefly), this show has been well-received so far, following John Nolan – a forty-year-old man who moves from his comfortable small town life to Los Angeles to pursue his dream of being a police officer for the LAPD. Of course, it’s no easy ride and he must navigate the dangerous, humorous, and unpredictable world of a “young” cop.
Get Christie Love
Written by Courtney Kemp Agboh (The Good Wife) and starring Kylie Bunbury (Game Night), Steven Weber (13 Reasons Why), and Camille Guaty (Crush), Get Christie Love is a reboot of the 70s blaxploitation thriller, centering on a charismatic CIA agent with the ability to adapt to different situations as she leads an elite ops unit.
Grand Hotel
Grand Hotel takes a look at the professional and personal lives of people working at a family-run hotel in Miami Beach. Written by Brian Tanen (Ugly Betty) and starring Roselyn Sanchez (Act of Valor), Anne Winters (Tyrant), and Demián Bichir (The Hateful Eight).
A Million Little Things
This hour-long drama with comedy elements follows a group of friends who are all stuck in their lives for different reasons and in different ways. When one of them dies unexpectedly, it’s just the wake-up call the others need to finally start living. Written by David J. Nash and starring James Roday (Psych), Stephanie Szostak (Dinner for Schmucks), and David Giuntoli (13 Hours).
For Love
In this epic love triangle story set against a grounded, secret world of magic in present day New Orleans, a woman grieving over the death of her fiance gets a mysterious phone from him. Written by Michael Cooney (Jack Frost) and starring Lex Scott Davis (Training Day), Rachel Skarsten (Reign), and Luke Arnold (Black Sails).
The Fix
An L.A. prosecutor moves to Oregon after losing a high-profile murder case. However, when the killer strikes again she must seek justice on her own terms. Written by Marcia Clark, Elizabeth Craft (666 Park Avenue), and Sarah Fain (Dollhouse) and starring Robin Tunney (The Craft), Breckin Meyer (Clueless), and Marc Blucas (Knight and Day).
False Profits
Described as a comedic soap in the same vein as Desperate Housewives, False Profits is about three suburban women in Arizona who hatch a scheme to launch their own cosmetics business. Written by Kayla Alpert (Confessions of a Shopaholic) and starring Shelley Hennig (Unfriended), Bellamy Young (Scandal), and Vanessa Williams (Shaft).
Salvage
In this mystery thriller written by Donald Todd (This Is Us), an ex-cop living in rural Florida is drawn into an investigation involving a sunken treasure. Starring Toby Kebbell (Dead Man’s Shoes), Jim Belushi (Little Shop of Horrors), and Joelle Carter (Justified).
The Finest
The Finest is a cop family drama written by Pam Veasey (The Tomorrow People), in which five African-American sisters – all officers in the NYPD – face the challenges of their high-risk jobs while juggling the responsibilities of marriage, motherhood, and family. Starring Eric Balfour (Six Feet Under), Amirah Vann (Underground), and Robert John Burke (Tombstone).
Man of the House
Written by Vijal Patel (Black-ish) and Frank Pines (Baby Daddy) and inspired by Pines’s life, Man of the House revolves around two recently divorced sisters who decide to move in together to raise their kids under one roof. The oldest kid and only son is left to figure out what “manhood” means in a world where he’s now completely surrounded by females. Starring Alyson Hannigan (American Pie), Leslie Bibb (Iron Man), and Jake Short (Mighty Med).
Most Likely To
Two women who went to high school together find themselves reunited as single moms living in the same house. Written by Diablo Cody (Young Adult) and starring Yvette Nicole Brown (Community), Lesli Margherita (The Number 23), and Mia Allan (Jane the Virgin).
The Greatest American Hero
A reboot of the classic 80s TV show with a female twist, The Greatest American Hero centers around Meera – a 30-year-old woman who loves tequila and karaoke and has spent her life searching (and failing) to find meaning. However, this all changes when an inexplicable event disrupts the course of Meera’s life and she is entrusted with a super suit to protect the planet. Written by Rachna Fruchbom (Parks and Recreation) and starring Hannah Simone (New Girl), George Wendt (Forever Young), and Ellie Reed (Girlboss).
Single Parents
A group of single parents form their own support system as they raise their kids and struggle to start new relationships. Written by Elizabeth Meriwether (No Strings Attached) and J.J. Philbin (The O.C.) and starring Leighton Meester (The Roommate), Taran Killam (Killing Gunther), and Brad Garrett (Everybody Loves Raymond).
Untitled Justin Noble
Written by Justin Noble (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), the untitled project is based on the book and blog How May We Hate You? The workplace ensemble comedy centers on two guest services associates at a high-end resort and the co-workers & guests they’re stuck with for eight to sixteen hours a day. Starring Kat Dennings (Charlie Bartlett), Nicole Byer (Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates), and D.J. Pierce.
Untitled Bobby Bowman
The untitled Bobby Bowman (The Millers) project is inspired by Bowman’s childhood growing up with a father with mental illness. The uplifting comedy features a dysfunctional family that perseveres despite their differences and finds happiness in unexpected places. Starring Brooke Elliott (Drop Dead Diva), Lilla Crawford (Into the Woods), and Brenna D’Amico.
FOX
Mixtape
Written by Joshua Safran (Gossip Girl) and directed by Jesse Peretz (Our Idiot Brother), Mixtape is a romantic musical drama that looks at a disparate group of interconnected people in contemporary Los Angeles through the lens of the music that defines who they are. Starring Jenna Dewan Tatum (Step Up), Callie Hernandez (La La Land), and Madeleine Stowe (Twelve Monkeys).
Untitled Danny Strong / David Elliot
Penned by David Elliot (Four Brothers), this show revolves around a legal team led by a fierce and fearless female lawyer with a hunger for justice. They reopen investigations, putting their own lives in danger to exonerate the innocent that were “proven” guilty. Starring Rachelle Lefevre (Barney’s Version), Riley Smith (Not Another Teen Movie), and Vincent Kartheiser (Mad Men).
The Passage
The Passage is a post-apocalyptic story about a botched U.S. government experiment that turns a group of death row inmates into highly infectious vampires, following an orphan girl who might be the only person able to stop the ensuing crisis. Starring Brianne Howey (The Exorcist), Karen Valero (Orange Is the New Black), and Zach Appelman (Sleepy Hollow).
Rel
Rel tells the story of a successful comic who tries to put his life back on track after his marriage falls apart. Written by Kevin Barnett (The Heartbreak Kid), LilRel Howery (Get Out), and Josh Rabinowitz (Broad City) and starring LilRel Howery, Jessica Moore (Wild ‘N Out), and Jordan L. Jones (Future Man).
Daddy Issues
In what is every daughter or son’s worst nightmare, Daddy Issues is about a single dad’s relationship with his adult daughters as it’s put to the test when he begins dating one of their best friends. Written by Erin Foster (Barely Famous) and starring Janina Gavankar (True Blood), Colleen Camp (Clue), and Don Johnson (Django Unchained).
Dan the Weatherman
After getting fired from his cushy job as a weatherman at the local TV station, a man named Dan finds it’s not enough to be a charming white man in this world and he reluctantly ends up at the neighboring Spanish TV station. Written by Steve Dildarian (The Life & Times of Tim).
The CW
Charmed
In this remake of the classic spellbinding 90s show, Melonie Diaz (Fruitvale Station), Madeleine Mantock (Into the Badlands), and Sarah Jeffery (Wayward Pines) will take on the roles of everyone’s favorite on-screen trio of witches. Written by Jessica O’Toole (Jane the Virgin), Amy Rardin (The Carrie Diaries), and Jessie Snyder Urman (Something Borrowed).
Roswell
The teen drama Roswell is getting a reboot, centering on the residents of Roswell, New Mexico where aliens live undercover among humans. Written by Carina Adly MacKenzie (The Originals) and starring Jeanine Mason (Grey’s Anatomy), Nathan Parsons (Once Upon a Time), and Tyler Blackburn (Pretty Little Liars).
Spencer
When a star high school football player from South Central is recruited to play for Beverly Hills High School, two separate worlds collide. Starring Jordan Belfi (Entourage), Bre-Z (Empire), and Cody Christian (Assassination Nation).
Wayward Sisters
In Wayward Sisters, Kim Rhodes will star as her long-running Supernatural character – Sheriff Jody Mills – and will be joined by young female cohorts, each tragically orphaned by monster attacks. Also starring Kathryn Newton (Lady Bird) & Clark Backo (Letterkenny).
CBS
F.B.I.
Created by Dick Wolf (Law & Order) and starring Connie Nielsen (Wonder Woman), Jeremy Sisto (Wrong Turn), and Zeeko Zaki (Stuck in Love), this show will detail the inner workings of the New York office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Magnum P.I.
In this reboot of the classic 80s show, an ex-Navy Seal returns home from Afghanistan and uses his military skills to become a private investigator in Hawaii. Written by Eric Guggenheim (Miracle) and Peter M. Lenkov (Demolition Man) and starring Zachary Knighton (The Hitcher), Jay Hernandez (Hostel), and Perdita Weeks (As Above, So Below).
Murder
Written by Amanda Green and based on the BBC miniseries, this new take on the investigative drama explores crime through the unique and often conflicting perspectives of cops and killers, witnesses and victims, and friends and family. Shot like a true-crime documentary, the show invites the audience inside the emotional journey of an investigation, allowing them to discern the truth and judge the suspect’s guilt or innocence for themselves. Starring Michael Chiklis (Fantastic Four), Luna Lauren Velez (Dexter), and Teyonah Parris (Dear White People).
L.A. Confidential
Based on James Ellroy’s novel of the same name, the show will follow the paths of three homicide detectives, a female reporter, and a Hollywood actress as they cross paths in 50s Los Angeles. Written by Ellroy and Jordan Harper (Gotham) and starring Walton Goggins (Predators), Sarah Jones (Sons of Anarchy), and Mark Webber (The End of Love).
God Friended Me
In this pilot, an atheist’s life is turned upside down when he is “friended” by God on Facebook. Written by Steven Lilian and Bryan Wynbrandt (Alcatraz) and starring Brandon Micheal Hall (Search Party), Joe Morton (Terminator 2), and Violett Beane (The Flash).
Red Line
Red Line is the story of a white cop mistakenly shooting a black doctor in Chicago and the resulting death’s impact on three families. Written by Caitlin Parrish and Erica Weiss (The View from Tall) and starring Noel Fisher (Shameless), Noah Wyle (Donnie Darko), and Emayatzy Corinealdi (Middle of Nowhere).
History of Them
History of Them is a multi-cultural ensemble that revolves around two friends and how they fell in love, using the couple’s social media as a guide. Written by Gloria Calderon Kellett (One Day at a Time) and starring Miranda Cosgrove (School of Rock), Brett Dier (Bomb Girls), and Lisa Vidal (Mighty Aphrodite).
Welcome to the Neighborhood
Created by Jim Reynolds (The Big Bang Theory), this show follows a friendly guy from the Midwest as he tries to fit in with a tough Los Angeles neighborhood. Starring Sheaun McKinney (Vice Principals) & Marcel Spears (The Mayor).
I Mom So Hard
Written by Michelle Nader and co-written by Kristin Hensley and Jennifer Smedley, I Mom So Hard focuses on two moms who show how their friendship gets them through being wives and mothers.
Untitled Austen Earl / Tim McAuliffe
The untitled show follows a young married couple whose evenings have become comfortable and routine. Their lives are completely upended when a young musician moves into their spare bedroom and brings with him the complications of being an up-and-coming mega popstar (and sometimes even the paparazzi.) Starring Damon Wayans Jr. (The Other Guys), Felix Mallard, and Chris Parnell (Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy).
Fam
This comedy follows a young woman named Clem who agrees to let her younger half-sister Shannon live with her and her fiancé to get away from their disaster of a dad. Written by Corinne Kingsbury (The Newsroom) and starring Nina Dobrev (The Final Girls), Odessa Adlon (Nashville), and Sheryl Lee Ralph (Moesha).
Murphy Brown
Created by Diane English (The Women), this modern-day revival of the sitcom Murphy Brown is set to chronicle the personal and professional life of a woman working as a TV journalist. Starring Candice Bergen (Miss Congeniality), Nik Dodani (Atypical), and Faith Ford (The Pacifier).
NBC
Untitled Bad Boys spinoff
Starring Gabrielle Union (Bad Boys II), Jessica Alba (Sin City), Naphtali Devon Brooks, and Sarah Chaney (Insecure), the Bad Boys spinoff is set to be a big one. The show will focus on Syd Burnett from Bad Boys 2. In the show, she has left the DEA and now has a fresh start in her new job as an LAPD detective. Alba will play Nancy McKenna – Burnett’s partner – who joined the army out of high school and spent most of the 00s in Iraq and Afghanistan. McKenna is now a detective raising two preteen stepkids with her husband.
In Between Lives
A mysterious young woman reluctantly uses her gift of clairvoyance to help a veteran LAPD detective and a damaged ex-FBI outsider solve the most unnerving and challenging cases the city encounters. This eerie ability also means she can see and talk to the dead, all of whom are seeking help for unresolved problems (whether she likes it or not.) Written by Moira Kirland (Castle) and starring Anne-Marie Johnson (Robot Jox), Chad James Buchanan (Inhumans), and Yusuf Gatewood (Wonder Boys).
The Village
Despite a difference in age, race, culture, and lifestyle, the residents of a Manhattan apartment building find the more their lives intertwine, the more complex and compelling their connections become. All under one roof, the show will introduce a recovering war vet, a pregnant teenage girl and her single mom, a cop with an unexpected love interest, a woman hiding a terrifying secret from her husband, and a Millennial lawyer who might find his grandfather is the best and worst roommate he ever could have hoped for. Written by Mike Daniels (Taken) and starring Michaela McManus (Aquarius), Moran Atias (Third Person), and Warren Christie (Apollo 18).
Abby’s
In this comedy that’s bound to be LOL, a woman runs an unlicensed bar out of her backyard. Written by Josh Malmuth (Mad Love) and starring Natalie Morales (Girls), Neil Flynn (The Middle), and Nelson Franklin (The Office).
Untitled Aseem Batra comedy
The untitled single-camera project shows one woman’s hilarious unfiltered take on the side effects of trying to have it all. Written by Orli Auslander and Aseem Batra (Scrubs) and starring Sarayu Blue (Sons of Tucson), Paul Adelstein (Land of the Lost), and Aisling Bea (Hard Sun).
Bright Futures
Bright Futures follows a group of young friends as they stumble through the transition from immaturity to success. Written by Hale Rothstein and Isaac Schamis (Grown-ish) and starring Emily Ratajkowski (We Are Your Friends), Lisa Kudrow (Friends), and Jimmy Tatro (22 Jump Street).
Like Family
A pair of young friends who’ve known each other since they were foster children try to make their way through adulthood in New York City. Written by Suzanne Martin (Frasier) and starring Rebecca Mader (The Devil Wears Prada), Brandon Mychal Smith (Dirty Grandpa), and Katie Wee (2 Broke Girls).
