Netflix Picks Up Two Seasons Of New Sabrina Series
Earlier in the year we reported that the team behind the CW’s campy-dark reinterpretation of Archie was working on a campy-dark reinterpretation of Sabrina. It would seem to be the logical next step, but what happened today caught us completely off-guard: Netflix snapped the show up instead.
And when we say snapped it up, we mean immediately, sight literally unseen. No pilot will be shot; it’s going to series. Not a single thing about this show actually exists at the moment other than the concept. No writers have been hired yet, the titular witch hasn’t been cast, nothing. All we know is that it’ll be based on Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s horror comic Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and thus will use 70’s satanic horror movies like Rosemary’s Baby and The Exorcist as inspiration. Netflix must really, really want to film Miss Grundy in a dark robe chanting forth demons, right?
One possible reason for Netflix wanting this show so badly may be due to the strong performance of Riverdale reruns on the service. Netflix never releases its true numbers, but the Season 2 premiere of Riverdale drew a 60% higher audience than Season 1, which suggests a lot of people were introduced to the show over the summer and got hooked.
Netflix has ordered two seasons of ten episodes, and wants Sabrina in full stream mode by 2019. The show is being fast-tracked through production and filming will begin next February.