Moviefone Editorial

Tag: SpinOffs

  • Comic-Con 2022: ‘Walking Dead’s Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira Returning

    Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon, Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, and Danai Gurira as Michonne in AMC's 'The Walking Dead.'
    (L to R) Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon, and Danai Gurira as Michonne, and Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes in AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead.’

    When Andrew Lincoln’s ‘The Walking Dead’ character Rick Grimes was spirited away by mysterious forces in a helicopter early in Season 9 of the show, fans were left wondering when he might show up again.

    And then Michonne, played by Dania Gurira, departed the following season on a quest to find the man she loves.

    We had been told around that time that their story might continue in TV movies (partly to work around Lincoln’s schedule).

    Now, though, both actors made a surprise appearance at the San Diego Comic-Con Hall H panel for the show to announce that their characters will in fact return in a new series.

    Lincoln and Gurira, who have been actively involved in conceiving the creative and the continuation of their characters’ story, will be executive producers, while Scott M. Gimple, Chief Content Officer of ‘Walking Dead’ Universe, is acting as showrunner.

    “What a great surprise for the fans at this final Comic-Con for the series that launched this universe and made television history, says Dan McDermott, president of entertainment and AMC Studios for AMC Networks. “We couldn’t be more excited for a truly epic series finale later this year and to see Andy and Danai return in a new series they helped create, one of three new series coming in 2023 that continue the stories of so many iconic and fan-favorite TWD characters.”

    Danai Gurira as Michonne, and Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes in AMC's 'The Walking Dead.'
    (L t R) Danai Gurira as Michonne, and Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes in AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead.’

    “Rick and Michonne are two of my favorite people and Danai and Andy are two of my favorite people,” Gimple says. “Working with all of them continues to be a dream come true. The three of us, along with a terrific team of ‘TWD’ all stars and incredible new voices, are crafting an insane love epic worth the long, long wait.”

    “This has been the most extraordinary journey playing Rick Grimes for the best part of a decade. The friendships I’ve made along the way are deep and lasting, so it’s fitting that I finally get to complete the story with Danai and Scott and the rest of the ‘TWD’ family, Lincoln enthuses. “I’m so excited to be returning to the screen as Rick, reuniting with Danai as Michonne, and bringing the fans an epic love story to add to the ‘Walking Dead’ Universe.”

    Gurira adds: “Michonne and this ‘TWD’ family has meant so much to me, and to continue the journey of these beloved characters, alongside Scott and Andy, both creatively and in front of the camera, and bringing ‘Walking Dead’ fans something truly special is just glorious. I can’t wait to pick up the katana again.”

    Here’s the official synopsis: “This series presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance by an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead… And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they’ve ever known before? Are they enemies? Lovers? Victims? Victors? Without each other, are they even alive – or will they find that they, too, are the Walking Dead?”

    While the main ‘Walking Dead’ show wraps up this year, there are a variety of spin-offs in the works, including those featuring fan-favorite Daryl (Norman Reedus), Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) and anthology ‘Tales of the Walking Dead’, which starts on August 14th.

    This new Rick/Michonne series, which has yet to announce its title, will launch next year with six episodes.

    Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes in AMC's 'The Walking Dead.'
    Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes in AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead.’
  • ‘Easy A’ Spinoff in the Works at Screen Gems

    ‘Easy A’ Spinoff in the Works at Screen Gems

    Emma Stone in Easy A
    Screen Gems

    The fictional Ojai North High School will once again serve as the backdrop for a teen comedy. Screen Gems has an “Easy A” spinoff in development, Variety reports. The publication’s sources say the studio has tapped Bert Royal, the original film’s screenwriter, to write and direct the project. Zanne Devine will again executive produce.

    “Easy A” was released in 2010 and told the story of Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone), a teen who got a reputation as a “skank” after a false rumor spread around her high school. The film was a box office success, making more than $74.95 million worldwide, from a budget of $8 million, per Box Office Mojo. It also helped launch the career of Stone, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Olive.

    Plot details for the spinoff haven’t been revealed, but sources told Variety that it will explore some of the same themes as the original film. So far, there’s no words as to whether or not any of the original characters will return. The story will reportedly follow different students at the same school, but we assume it would be possible to work in “Easy A” alums who wanted to return.

    There’s a lot more we want to know, but for now, we’ll just enjoy this news. It already feels like we’ve got a pocketful of sunshine.

    [via: Variety]

  • 8 TV Spinoffs You Love Just As Much (or More) Than the Shows They’re Based on

    8 TV Spinoffs You Love Just As Much (or More) Than the Shows They’re Based on

     

  • USA Reveals Title of Its ‘Suits’ Spinoff Starring Gina Torres

    The second show in the “Suits” franchise officially has a name: “Second City.”

    Star Gina Torres made the big announcement Monday, according to Deadline. The actress was at NBCUniversal’s upfront in New York, and she reportedly revealed the title as she introduced footage from the “Suits” Season 7 finale. The episode originally aired April 25.

    “Second City” will head to Chicago (hence the title), following lawyer Jessica Pearson as she makes a name and a home for herself there. Of course, she’ll face new challenges, especially as the show takes a more political bent. Creator Aaron Korsch previously indicated as much, telling Deadline that the character is “going to get in a tangle and a tussle with some Chicago politics players.”

    “Second City” was introduced as a backdoor pilot, meaning its pilot episode came during the “Suits” Season 7 finale. The episode in question brought back Torres’s character once again, one of multiple guest appearances since the actress — a former “Suits” series regular — exited at the end of Season 6. Now, Torres is back in a starring role, and we’ll get to follow all Jessica’s adventures in the spinoff.

    USA Network has not yet announced the premiere date of “Second City.”

    [via: Deadline]

  • ‘Suits’ Spinoff Starring Gina Torres Officially Headed to USA Network

    The possible “Suits” spinoff due to be set up in Season 7’s finale is officially a go.

    USA Network announced Thursday that it had greenlighted the Gina Torres-starring project from Universal Cable Productions. The new show will follow Torres’s character, Jessica Pearson, as she takes on “the dirty world of Chicago politics.” The network teased a big adjustment for the high-powered attorney, but also hinted that familiar faces might pop up. Apparently, “old relationships from Pearson Specter Litt could also come in handy” for the lawyer.

    Jessica was a central character in the first several seasons of “Suits,” but the character moved to Chicago for love during Season 6. Since then, she has remained involved with the firm, giving Torres plenty of opportunities to reprise the role. “Suits” creator Aaron Korsh described working with her as “an extraordinary pleasure” and said in a statement that he “always hoped [they] would work together again.”

    They’re getting that chance now. The two will executive produce the series together, alongside showrunner Daniel Arkin, Doug Liman, David Bartis, and Gene Klein of Hypnotic.

    The “Suits” Season 7 finale, complete with its look at the spinoff, airs April 25.

  • There Could Be a ‘Bad Boys’ Spinoff Series Starring Gabrielle Union

    “Bad Boys” might be coming for TV — well, in a way. The action franchise has potentially given birth to a TV series.

    There is a spinoff project in the works that centers on Gabrielle Union‘s “Bad Boys II” character, Sydney “Syd” Burnett, according to Deadline. So far, it is still being pitched to networks, but the publication reports there is “strong interest.”

    The project does seem to warrant said interest. Not only is Union attached, it is being penned by “The Blacklist” writers Brandon Margolis and Brandon Sonnier. On top of that, “Bad Boys” producer Jerry Bruckheimer is involved. The Sony Pictures TV Studios project also comes from Doug Belgrad through 2.0 Entertainment and Primary Wave Entertainment.

    In “Bad Boys II,” Syd was a special agent who worked undercover with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). At the beginning, she and Mike (Will Smith) were hiding their romantic relationship from her brother Marcus (Martin Lawrence), as he was Mike’s partner. However, their eventually secret came to light as their respective jobs collided.

    So far, there’s no word of Smith or Lawrence being involved, so we’d be shocked if either ended up signing on as a series regular. That said, we’d love to see either in a guest appearance. Of course, first things first: The project needs to find a home.

    [via: Deadline]

  • 5 Hopes for the ‘Walking Dead’ Spinoff

    “The Walking Dead” ends its fifth season on March 29, but fans won’t have long to wait for the companion series, aka spinoff. AMC is airing the first six episodes in late summer, presumably as a lead-in to the mother series’ Season 6 premiere in October. Intel is slowly shuffling out about the spinoff, with the producers emphasizing how different the companion series will be from the main show. This will probably be a hit for AMC whether hardcore Dead-heads like it or not, but we really want to like it. So here are five hopes we have for Zombie Round 2.

    1. Give us the big picture
    The main show, which is tied to Robert Kirkman’s comic book, started with small-town sheriff’s deputy Rick Grimes waking up in a Georgia hospital a couple of months after the zombie apocalypse began. We’ve followed him in Georgia for five season and just hit a small community in Virginia. The focus of the main show is very limited, and Kirkman said if he had any regrets it was having the show hit the CDC in Season 1, which was the only time we got any perspective on the world. We don’t know how the outbreak began or any of the details of how it spread. Now is that time for that perspective. The spinoff is meant to be a prequel, but only at first, showing us the start of the apocalypse then catching up to Rick’s timeline (without ever showing Rick or the current group). The CDC may be shown as talking heads, but it would also be good to see what’s happening around the world, not just get details in speeches. On the main show, Jenner said something about France getting closest to a cure. How close, and what does that even mean, or look like? And how did everyone become infected, so that they turn at death, even if not bitten? Take a step back and give us the big picture of how the world ended.

    2. Show us more locations
    The spinoff pilot was shot in Los Angeles, which isn’t exactly new ground for television, and if we just follow another small group of people based in one location it may feel like a retread of what we’ve been watching for the past five seasons on the main show. Why not follow multiple locations, either concurrently with the L.A. group or starting with L.A. then moving on to a series of new locations, with a different cast and place in the world each season? Show us snow walkers in Canada, rainforest walkers in the Amazon, or — heck — just leave the coast of California on a boat and see how far the characters make it. T-Dog always wanted to go to the coast on the main show, let’s see how someone fares. AMC isn’t just going to write a blank check, but if they’re already in L.A. they can use soundstages and at least pretend to show us the world.

    3. Amp up the action
    The main show has been criticized at times (looking at you, Season 2!) for its slow patches. We’re fans of the deep character moments, but if they’re going to go ahead and launch a second show they might as well cater to the fans’ craving for more action. Think Season 5 premiere, not Season 4 premiere. Keep it moving. And since this is the start of the outbreak, we’re expecting a lot more deaths. Not the occasional heartfelt death with an accompanying song from Beth, but massive bombing-of-Atlanta casualties. We need to see how the population thinned to the extent that it became survival of the fittest/luckiest.

    4. Make the characters (especially the teens) likable
    Cliff Curtis and Kim Dickens are leading the spinoff cast, and they seem to both play educators with children — teenagers. That could be bad — like Dana Brody from “Homeland” bad — with the added irritation that they’re L.A. teens. No offense to L.A., but shows like “90210” and “The O.C.” have already given us enough from that world. Plus, the spinoff character descriptions suggest some moody kids are ahead, with words like “rebellious teenage son,” “angriest kid in town,” and “screwed up” thrown in. It’s worrisome. Executive producer David Alpert talked about the spinoff at SXSW, saying (via The Daily Beast), “…we’re going to invest ourselves in these characters that are nuanced, detailed, and honestly really f–ked up and having these awful experiences between themselves, and trying to find a way, as a lot of us do. You have an ex-wife, you have an ex-husband, and you’re trying to find out, ‘How do I pick up the kids from school?’ and just when you think you can barely hold on, zombies start coming.” OK, but please make the people we’re stuck with more likable than they currently sound. A zombie spinoff should be an escape for the audience, not torture. Don’t make us root for the walkers.

    5. Ditch the “big bads” — unless you show their origin stories
    The main show is now in a world where humans are bigger threats than walkers, but hopefully the spinoff avoids the big bad route. Human conflict will surely be a main focus, but there’s no need for standoffs with group leader “villains” like The Governor at Woodbury, Gareth at Terminus, Dawn at Grady, or (eventually) Negan of The Saviors. That said, if they want to show how a regular person could become like The Governor over time, through the chaos and tragedy of the outbreak, that’s different. We haven’t seen that yet on the main show, we just keep meeting existing group leaders and (sometimes) hear their backstories in speeches. Show how they got to that point or don’t show them here at all. However this plays out, AMC has invested in at least two seasons – -the six-episode mini season in 2015 and another season of whatever length in 2016. If we could add another hope, it’s that the second season is longer and covers more of the long summer zombie wasteland where the main show leaves off. (Consider a May-October run, AMC!)

    What are your hopes for the companion show? Do you hope we see celebrities in the zombie apocalypse, since it’s L.A., or skip that, since “Zombieland” already had Bill Murray as himself?
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  • 6 ‘CSI’ Spinoffs We Wish Existed

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    “CSI: Cyber” premieres tonight on CBS, starring Academy Award winner Patricia Arquette as a CyberPsycholigist solving internet crimes for the FBI. We’ve all seen our share of procedural spinoffs over the years — new ones in different cities with previously unheard-of specific department focuses pop up every TV season. Honestly, we thought this installment was called “CSI: Cyborg” when we first read it incorrectly (wishful thinking), which appealed to us just a tad more than the lawless goings-on of the deep, dark web. And that got us thinking about alternate “CSI” spinoffs we wish existed. Check out what we came up with.

  • The 35 Best TV Spinoffs Ever

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    Its strange that “Better Call Saul,” which debuts on Feb. 8 on AMC, is so eagerly awaited. After all, how can the series, a prequel of sorts to “Breaking Bad,” be anywhere near as good as the show that spawned it? Sure, the adventures of lawyer Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk) before he became the money-launderer to Albuquerque’s meth-dealing elite ought to be darkly funny in the way that “Breaking Bad” often was. Nonetheless, history is not on the side of the spinoff.

    That’s because a spinoff is usually an indication of creative bankruptcy, not creative ferment. There’s usually something hacky about taking a character introduced in one show and placing him or her in his own series, or expanding a franchise to create a new show that’s just like the old show but with a different setting.

    Still, as rare as a good spinoff is, it’s less rare than you’d think. In fact, many classic shows are spinoffs, including several you may not have realized were spawned from other shows. Here are 35 of the spinoffs that give us hope for the prospects of “Better Call Saul.”

  • Who Is Saul Goodman?: 5 Things to Know Before ‘Better Call Saul’ Premieres


    The “Breaking Bad” spinoff “Better Call Saul” has a two-night premiere this week, starting Sunday, February 8 right after the midseason premiere of “The Walking Dead” Season 5. It may sneak up on some viewers who were still expecting to see “Talking Dead” at that 10 p.m. ET time, and other folks may tune in just because AMC’s teasers have been funny and intriguing — even if they aren’t familiar with “Breaking Bad,” the lead character of Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk) or anything else in this world. No worries. The Powers That Be have emphasized that you don’t need to be a “Breaking Bad” fan to appreciate this show, and even hardcore BB fans will be surprised by the story. It’s not rocket science (or a tricky meth recipe) to catch up on the basics, and newbies should be ready to go once they know these five things.

    1. The show is a prequel set six years before “Breaking Bad”
    Saul first appears as the sketchy but hilarious lawyer of Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) and Walter White (Bryan Cranston) in Season 2, Episode 8 of “Breaking Bad.” His first big episode was actually titled “Better Call Saul.” This spinoff show is set in 2002, which is six years before that point, so we see how he became that guy. However, we’re also meant to see some flashes from the “present” time, after the explosive BB finale sent Saul fleeing from New Mexico to Nebraska for the protection of a new life. So if you haven’t seen BB, but would still like to someday, just know that some scenes might function as future spoilers (but not in a way that should dissuade you from watching the entire amazing series).

    2. Saul isn’t even Saul’s real name
    Back in 2002, Saul wasn’t even Saul. He was just a struggling small-time lawyer still going by his real name, Jimmy McGill. He later goes by Saul Goodman because it sounds Jewish and it’s a play on “s’all good, man” to attract clients. As he explained to Walter White, “The Jew thing I just do for the homeboys. They all want a pipe-hitting member of the tribe, so to speak…” Yeah, he’s that kind of guy. Sleaze-fest all the way. But he’s good at what he does.

    3. He’s a criminal lawyer
    Jesse Pinkman, Walter White’s former chemistry student and meth-making partner in “Breaking Bad,” was the one who initially recommended that they go to Saul (better call Saul!) to be their lawyer, because, as Jesse put it, when the going gets tough, you don’t need a criminal lawyer, you need a CRIMINAL lawyer. Savvy? Saul is knee-deep in the criminal underworld and works to connect various players in that realm.

    4. He’s had multiple wives
    Saul is a character on every front, and he revealed that he’s had many wives — he caught one in flagrante delicto with his own stepfather — and he also had a relationship with his secretary. Hopefully we’ll see some of his personal life on “Saul,” since it seems like too much of a delicious mess to ignore.

    5. Mike will be a series regular
    Fans aren’t expecting “Better Call Saul” to feature too many “Breaking Bad” faces on a regular bases, but one you’ll get to know (and probably love) is Michael Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks). On “Breaking Bad,” Mike was Saul’s private investigator and “fixer.” He’s a former cop and a total badass. So it’s interesting that a “Better Call Saul” sneak peek shows an early interaction between Mike and Jimmy/Saul, from before they started working together, and Mike is … working as a parking attendant? Why is a guy like Mike working in a parking garage? We’ll find out.

    There are still a lot of things BB fans and non-fans will discover together, like the relationship between Jimmy/Saul and his older brother Chuck McGill, a new main character played by Michael McKean. Watch this AMC video for more on their dynamic and for more details on the new (and not-so-new) characters of “Better Call Saul”: