Image Credit: Getty Images
She’s back: Sarah Michelle Gellar is returning to TV next season as the star of Ringer, a thriller developed for CBS but punted over to The CW.
Sources say CBS brass liked the script and loved the idea of casting Gellar, but once they saw the pilot it didn’t feel on brand for the network — and luckily the company has a sister network at The CW (that just so happens to be built partly upon the foundation of another network, The WB, where Gellar reigned as high priestess for years as the star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer).
The network also picked up The Secret Circle as a companion for Vampire Diaries, and medical drama Hart of Dixie. Official descriptions of the new shows:
RINGER
Logline: Sarah Michelle Gellar stars as a woman, who after witnessing a murder, goes on the run, hiding out by assuming the life of her wealthy identical twin sister – only to learn that her sister’s seemingly idyllic life is just as complicated and dangerous as the one she’s trying to leave behind. The series stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ioan Gruffudd, Kristoffer Polaha, Nestor Carbonell, Tara Summers and Mike Colter. RINGER is produced by CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television in association with ABC Television Studios and Brillstein Entertainment with executive producers Pam Veasey (“CSI, NY,” “The District”), Peter Traugott (“Samantha Who?”) and Emmy Award-winner Richard Shepard (“Ugly Betty”). The pilot was directed by Richard Shepard.
THE SECRET CIRCLE
Logline: Based upon the book series by L.J. Smith (author of “The Vampire Diaries” book series), THE SECRET CIRCLE is the story of a young woman (Britt Robertson) who moves to a new town and discovers that not only is she a witch and part of a secret coven, but she’s also the key that will unlock a centuries-old battle of good versus evil. The series stars Britt Robertson, Thomas Dekker, Gale Harold, Phoebe Tonkin, Jessica Parker Kennedy, Shelly Henning, Louis Hunter, Ashley Crow and Natasha Henstridge. Based upon the book series by L.J. Smith (author of “The Vampire Diaries” book series), THE SECRET CIRCLE is from Outerbanks Entertainment and Alloy Entertainment in association with Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios with executive producers Kevin Williamson (“The Vampire Diaries,” “Scream,” “Dawson’s Creek”), Andrew Miller (“Imaginary Bitches”), Leslie Morgenstein (“The Vampire Diaries,” “Gossip Girl”) and Gina Girolamo. The pilot was directed by Liz Friedlander (“The Vampire Diaries,” “90210”).
HART OF DIXIE
Logline: Culture shock awaits a young New York City doctor (Rachel Bilson) after she inherits a medical practice in a small Southern town inhabited by an eclectic and eccentric group of characters in this comedic drama. The series stars Rachel Bilson, Jamie King, Wilson Bethel, Cress Williams, McKaley Miller and Scott Porter. HART OF DIXIE is from Bonanza Productions Inc., in association with Fake Empire, Warner Bros. Television and CBS Television Studios, with executive producers Leila Gerstein (“Gossip Girl,” “Eli Stone”), Josh Schwartz (“Gossip Girl,” “Chuck,” “The O.C.”), Stephanie Savage (“Gossip Girl,” “The O.C.”), Len Goldstein and Jason Ensler (“Gossip Girl,” “Chuck”). The pilot was directed by Jason Ensler.
H8R
Logline: Celebrities go head-to-head with civilians who hate them to win their “haters” over. Mario Lopez hosts. H8R is from Horizon Alternative Television with executive producers Lisa Gregorisch (“Extra”), Jeremy Spiegel (“Extra”), and Mario Lopez.
Uh Oh…with the pickup of the “Ringer”, “Nikita” will most likely be canceled to make room for this and the other new shows.
I sure hope not. When are they going to give us the decision on Nikita?
The original Madaline was on the season finale. They have to come back to see if any of the others will show up. I really enjoyed seeing her.
She still had that evil edge she was famous for.
I’m not so sure. I’m pretty sure that Nikita and One Tree Hill will still be picked up. I think this is worse news for Hellcats which will now certainly be axed.
TV by the numbers has already confirmed that Nikita has been picked up for season 2!
Thanks Kari P, but thats old news, they announced that at like 4:15, thanks for the breaking news! I just heard they bombed pearl harbor
I just wanted to reply to person ho replied to this. Kari posted at 4:17. You came on at 6:51 and said that it was old news and they announced it at 4:15. It wasn’t old news when she posted it. Not her fault that you came on 3 hours later and chose not to look at time stamps.
Nikita is officially renewed!
Thanks K, thats old news, they announced that at like 4:15, thanks for the breaking news! I just heard they bombed pearl harbor
at @K
you sir, are an ass.
I think Hellcats will be cancelled.
They just announced that Nikita is a keeper.
Thanks mark, that news is old! They announced it at like 6:15, why don’t you tell us something we don’t know!
I really hope they don’t cancel Nikita. I was a big Buffy fan, and it’s good to see SMG back…But if I had to choose between this Ringer show and Nikita, my vote goes to Nikita.
Good job getting Ringer. May check out The Secret Circle. Wont be watching Hart of Dixie though. And what about Nikita & Tree Hill?
I had been reading that OTH would be back, at least for 13 episodes. Nikita should be back also.
I’ll check out all three of these new CW shows next season….looking forward to it. I love OTH and Vampire Diaries.
Glad to see Wilson Bethel’s show get picked up. He knocked it out of the park as Ryder on Y&R!
omg, i wanna watch Ringer soooo bad.. love SMG
I’m looking forward to SMG on tv again too. but I don’t understand one thing: if she takes her sister’s life, where’d the sister go?
I’m a bit confused by that, too.
I thought I read a couple of months ago that when she went to her sister for help, she found her sister dead and that is when she took her place. of course, the pilot could have changed drastically since then.
seriously EW? I read this on MSN 2 or 3 days ago. you got scooped by MSN, on entertainment news. Be ashamed.
EW reported the rumored pick up last friday just like everyone else. It’s an official pick up now….
EW reported on the possibility of Gellar’s show being picked up by the CW several days ago. Today they’ve simply upgraded it to official status.
I hope Sarah Michelle Gellar does more mainstream movies from now on. She is an underrated actress and should have joined the A-list years ago. So, I hope she does more mainstream movies, tries to reach her full potential as an actress and tries to win an Oscar.
agreed. The only movie she made that was succesful was The Grudge.
She was also in “I Know What You Did Last Summer”, “Scooby Doo”, “Cruel Intentions” & one of the “Scream” movies. All successful.
Yes, but she wasn’t the lead in any of those films. And “Cruel Intentions” wasn’t all that successful.
I like SMG, but I really don’t think she’ll ever win an Oscar. Let’s be realistic.
She won a Daytime Emmy for playing Kendall in All My Children. A lot of people might sneer at that, but she was excellent in that role and there’s no reason not to believe that she won’t win more awards down the road.
Can’t wait for “Ringer” but what about “Nikita” and “Hellcats?”
Hellcats will almost definitely be cancelled. Nikita is still up in the air but I’m pretty sure it will be picked up.
I wish they would hurry up with the decision on Nikita…
Sarah deserves much better than the CW.
I agree. I love the CW because it’s so trashy, but she’ll never get the attention she deserves.
At the same time, the CW gives a chance to shows that the Big 4 reject for lame reasons like not feeling “on brand.” Right now they have this trashy-teen vibe going, but by continuing to take chances and pick up new shows they can move out of that – at least on some nights.
I’d rather see her take a chance at a major network and fail than be a hit on one that is a joke. This is just yet another letdown in her career, being a fan of hers has been nothing but heartbreaking for the past couple years. A few years ago she was shooting a pilot for HBO….
ya I definitely think that they are slowly starting to move away from teen drama with the renewal of Nikita and pickup of Ringer. I think they made a great choice with Secret Circle, they always do science fiction really well.
Yeah, I think CW is trying to move away from the teen drama stuff. Dawn Ostroff is out, so they’re going to try new things. And a show with even decent ratings can live on forever at CW – look at Smallville, Supernatural, OTH. This show sounds like a better fit for CW than CBS for sure. Not sure why CBS even picked up the pilot if it wasn’t on brand for them.
Lol at H8R!
Hart of Dixie sounds too much like Doc Hollywood to me so I think I’ll pass. Ringer sounds good though, I’ll probably check it out.
Yeah, I agree. The premise of Hart of Dixie sounds dumb. And I can’t really picture a medical drama on CW, so I’m sure it’ll be more of a personal one. I really like Bilson, so I’ll check it out.
I LOVE RACHEL BILSON SO I’LL DEF BE WATCHING. I also think it will have a Gilmore Girls flare to it and I LOVED that show.
Yes – GG or Men in Trees, which I also loved!
I hope it’s good. Rachel Bilson deserves a good show.
NIKITA was just renewed. Along with One Tree Hill (can’t anything kill that show). But good news about Nikita…
Hellcats has been cancelled!
Thanks for the update! I really like OTH – it gets better ratings than 90210. It really seemed like they were wrapping it up this season, but hopefully they can do it right this year.
So not interested in Ringer, but I will check out Secret Circle based on how good The Vamipire Diaries tv show has turned out to be.
stupid typos – The Vampire Diaries
I agree. I’m really excited about Secret Circle. But I’ll probably check out Ringer only because of Sarah Michelle Gellar.
Nestor Carbonell? That’s all you had to say!!
Great to have SMG back on TV!
Yes, it will be nice to have SMG back in primetime – it’s been too long! I like Nestor Carbonell, and loved Ioan Gruffudd in “The Forsyte Saga” and “King Arthur” – it’s a lock for me to watch this show now…
I love SMG, so I’ll definitely be checking out “Ringer”. “The Secret Circle” sounds just right for The CW, but I don’t know about “Hart of Dixie”. I’ll have to reserve judgment on that one. “Nikita” might pair well with “Ringer” and “Secret Circle” will probably be paired w/ VD, so it doesn’t sound very good for “Hellcats”. I think OTH might not have a full season if it comes back, though. I’m just wondering if they’re going to move “Supernatural” to the earlier timeslot on Fridays & what they’ll pair it with.
Nikit and Supernatural have the same audience, so a lot of people are speculating they might move Supernatural to 8:00 on Fridays, followed by Nikita. But, Nikita is also the only show I could really see Ringer paired with. I think Nikita would do really well paired with either one of those show. Reports are that The Secret Circle will definitely be paired up with TVD, giving Kevin Williamson his own block. And, Hart of Dixie will be paired up with GG, giving Josh Schwartz his own block.