The CW Acquires ‘Swamp Thing’, Canadian Drama ‘Coroner’ & UK Comedy ‘Dead Pixels’ As Network Readies Fall 2020 Lineup

Nellie Andreeva and Denise Petski
·4 min read

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The CW has acquired former DC Universe series Swamp Thing, based on the DC character, along with Canadian drama Coroner and half-hour British comedy Dead Pixels, from BBC Studios, in their U.S. debuts. All will premiere on broadcast and the network’s free ad-supported streaming platforms. They join previously announced Tell Me A Story, from CBS All Access. Premiere dates and times will be announced later.

The CW is known for using acquired scripted series as summer programming. This year is different as there is a lot of uncertainty over when TV series will be able to go into production amid the coronavirus pandemic, so it is possible that the CW would use some of the acquisitions for late summer or fall to give its originals more time to produce new episodes. The CW is expected to unveil its fall schedule on Thursday.

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Swamp Thing premiered May 31, 2019 on DC Universe and was canceled after one season. It is the second DC Universe series to find a network home at the CW, joining Stargirl. Swamp Thing follows Dr. Abby Arcane (Crystal Reed) as she investigates what seems to be a deadly swamp-born virus in a small town in Louisiana but when a mysterious creature emerges from the murky marsh, she finds herself facing the nightmares of a supernatural world where no one is safe. The series also stars Virginia Madsen, Andy Bean, Henderson Wade, Derek Mears, Maria Sten Jeryl Prescott and Kevin Durand, with Jennifer Beals and Will Patton.

Based on the DC characters created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson, Swamp Thing is produced by Atomic Monster in association with Warner Bros. Television. The series is executive produced by James Wan, Mark Verheiden, Gary Dauberman, Michael Clear and Len Wiseman.

Coroner (two seasons) is a character driven one-hour drama about Dr. Jenny Cooper (Serinda Swan), a recently widowed, newly appointed coroner who investigates any suspicious, unnatural or sudden deaths in Toronto. Each death brings Jenny into a new arena in the city and sparks buzzworthy themes… Jenny taps into her intuition, as much as her intellect and heart, as she solves cases along with the help of Homicide Detective Donovan “Mac” McAvoy (Roger Cross), a man who isn’t afraid of challenging the status quo; pathologist Dr. Dwayne Allen (Lovell Adams-Gray), his assistant River Baitz; and Alison Trent (Tamara Podemski), Jenny’s assistant who keeps it real. And while Jenny solves mysterious deaths, she also deals with clinical anxiety, a teenage son, Ross (Ehren Kassam), who is still grieving the death of his father, and the prospect of starting a new relationship with the enigmatic Liam (Éric Bruneau).

Coroner, a CBC Original Series, is executive produced by Morwyn Brebner, Adrienne Mitchell, Jonas Prupas, Brett Burlock, and Peter Emerson, and is produced by Muse Entertainment, Back Alley Films, and Cineflix Studios.

Created by Jon Brown (Succession), Dead Pixels (one season) follows Meg (Alexa Davies), Nicky (Will Merrick) and Usman (Sargon Yelda) who are obsessed with the online fantasy game “Kingdom Scrolls.” Meg would happily cut a date short to go home and defend Castle Blackfinger. Nicky thinks the miscasting of Vince Vaughn as Tanadaal in the “Kingdom Scrolls” movie is an international outrage. And Usman has made a plywood lid for his child’s playpen, so he can play the game in peace. Oh, and Nicky definitely isn’t into Meg. That would be a cliché. Dead Pixels is split equally between the characters’ tragicomic real lives and their computer-animated misadventures in “Kingdom Scrolls.”

Executive Produced by Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain, Phil Clarke and Jon Brown, Dead Pixels is a Various Artists Limited production for Channel 4 that airs on E4 in the UK and distributed by BBC Studios.

 

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