15 years after The WB made an attempt and almost a decade since Tim Burton gave it a comedic and cinematic try, The CW is developing a modern update of Dark Shadows which is titled Dark Shadows: Reincarnation. The project is being put together by writer Mark B. Perry (The Ghost Whisperer, Revenge) with Amasia Entertainment’s Michael Helfant, Bradley Gallo and Tracy Mercer, along with Tracy Curtis and Cathy Curtis, the children of original creator Dan Curtis.
Deadline broke the story as an exclusive this afternoon.
Dark Shadows in its original incarnation was a soap that ran from 1966-1971 on ABC; after a subdued start, the show started introducing fantastical elements before ultimately introducing Barnabas the vampire as played by Jonathan Frid. The legendary Joan Bennett played the reclusive Elizabeth Collins Stoddard and Alexandre Moltke Isles was governess Victoria Winters. The series was remade in 1991 when it starred Ben Cross as Barnabas; in the 2004 WB pilot, Barnabas was portrayed by Alec Newman.
The new show is said to be a “modern-day continuation.”
“As a first-generation fan, it’s been a dream of mine to give Dark Shadows the Star Trek treatment since way back in the ’80s when Next Generation was announced, so I’m beyond thrilled and humbled to be entrusted with this resurrection,” Mark B. Perry said in a statement posted on Deadline. “And while I could never hope to fill Dan Curtis’ very large shoes, I do aspire to carry them a little farther into the future. I also want to reassure the fans of the original that this version will treat the show’s mythology with the same reverence given to Star Trek, but will also make the show accessible for audiences who aren’t yet familiar with the macabre world of the Collinses. My plan is to take as few liberties as possible with the Dark Shadows canon, while bearing in mind a quote from a 1970s episode delivered by the inimitable Oscar-nominee Grayson Hall as Dr. Julia Hoffman: ‘The Collins family history is not particularly famous for its accuracy’.”
Dark Shadows: Reincarnation is being developed for The CW with Warner Bros. Television.
