'Supernatural' Spinoff, Rob Thomas'
'iZombie,' 'Flash' Ordered to Pilot at
CWhttps://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/supernatural-spinoff-rob-thomas-izombie-675484The CW is doubling down on
Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas
and Supernatural .
The network has picked up to pilot
Thomas' DC Comics adaptation
iZombie, the rumored Supernatural
spinoff, and made official its pilot
order for fellow DC entry Flash , The
Hollywood Reporter has learned.
Supernatural: Tribes will explore the
clashing hunter and monster cultures
of Chicago and hails from
Supernatural's writer Andrew Dabb ,
who will exec produce alongside Eric
Kripke , Robert Singer , showrunner
Jeremy Carver and McG. Singer will
direct the Warner Bros. Television
entry.
iZombie is described as a
supernatural crime procedural that
centers on a medical-student-
turned-zombie who takes a job in the
coroner's office in order to gain
access to the brains she must
reluctantly eat to maintain her
humanity. However, with every brain
she eats, she inherits the corpse's
memories. With the help of her
medical examiner boss and a police
detective, she solves homicide cases
in order to quiet the disturbing
voices in her head.
Thomas and Veronica Mars ' Diane
Ruggiero will pen the script and
executive produce the Warner Bros.
Television and Rob Thomas
Productions entry alongside frequent
collaborators Danielle Stokdyk and
Dan Etheridge . The drama is based
on the characters created by Chris
Robertson and Michael Allred and
published in the comic from DC's
Vertigo imprint.
Finally, the network confirmed its
pilot order for Arrow spinoff The
Flash , which was formerly intended
to be a planted episode but will now
be filmed as a stand-alone. Grant
Gustin stars as scientist Barry Allen
who is given the power of super
speed, which transforms him into the
Fastest Man Alive. Arrow 's Greg
Berlanti , Andrew Kreisberg and DC's
Geoff Johns will pen the script and
executive produce alongside David
Nutter , who will direct the pilot.
Berlanti Productions' Melissa Kellner
Berman will co-EP. The previously
announced Jesse L. Martin , Danielle
Panabaker and Rick Cosnett will co-
star.
The pickups come after Supernatural
notched a three-year high
Wednesday and continue the
network's recent track record with
spinoffs. This season, The CW
successfully launched The Vampire
Diaries spinoff The Originals and,
should both Supernatural: Tribes and
Flash move forward, the network will
have three spinoffs on the air, as The
Originals is considered very likely to
return for a second season.
For Thomas, the project extends his
relationship with The CW after the
network picked up a Veronica Mars
web series spinoff that the prolific
producer also will oversee for the
network's digital platform CW Seed.
iZombie and Flash bring to four the
number of DC Comics titles to earn a
pilot order this season; Fox has
Batman prequel Gotham and NBC has
Hellblazer adaptation Constantine .
The zombie story arrives as AMC's
The Walking Dead continues to break
records for the network, ranking as
TV's No. 1 scripted drama among
adults 18-49. The series is based on
the Image Comics title created by
Robert Kirkman . NBC also is prepping
Babylon Fields, which explores what
happens when the dead rise in New
York, and ABC has Forever, a
procedural about an immortal
medical examiner.
The trio of pilot orders brings The
CW's haul to five so far this pilot
season and continues its love affair
with sci-fi under president Mark
Pedowitz .