The CW has picked up DC comic book adaptation “Black Lightning” and Lucy Hale-led dramedy “Life Sentence” to series, the network announced Wednesday.
Cress Williams stars in Greg Berlanti‘s latest comic book show, based on the comics of the same name. “Black Lightning” will follow Jefferson Pierce (Williams), who hung up the suit and his secret identity years ago. But with a daughter hell-bent on justice and a star student being recruited by a local gang, he’ll be pulled back into the fight as the wanted vigilante and DC legend — Black Lightning.
The husband-and-wife team of Mara Brock Akil and Salim Akil co-created the show and wrote the pilot which comes from Warner Bros. TV and will be executive produced by the Akils along with Berlanti and Sarah Schechter. Salim Akil will serve as showrunner.
“Life Sentence” follows Stella (Hale), a young woman diagnosed with terminal cancer, who finds out that she’s not dying after all, forcing her to learn to live with the choices she made when she decided to “live like she was dying.”
Erin Cardillo and Richard Keith are writing and executive producing the pilot, with Bill Lawrence and Jeff Ingold also serving as EPs. The project hails from Doozer Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.
The two series join “Dynasty” and “Valor” as new show pickups for The CW’s 2017-18 season. The network has also renewed all of its returning series except for freshman dramas “No Tomorrow” and “Frequency.”
The network has two remaining pilots, “Searchers” and “Insatiable,” still awaiting news of pickup or pass.