NBC is facing the bittersweet symphony. The network has officially passed on the television show reboot of the popular 1999 movie Cruel Intentions, Variety reported.
The television reboot of the movie may not be completely dead, as the pilot will be shopped around to other networks. When the show was first announced in February, many networks entered a bidding war to try and get the show to air on their network.
Since NBC ordered the pilot to series, finding a place to put the show on their schedule seemed like one of the biggest hurdles to getting the show on the air. At one point, NBC was considering saving the show for the midseason, but that was quickly scraped due to the network already having different programming coming to the midseason, including Chicago Justice, Emerald City, The New Celebrity Apprentice and Powerless.
Once it was decided that the Cruel Intentions reboot wasn’t going to air in the midseason, NBC executives were considering airing it during the summer, which was considered more appropriate since the show would have a younger-skewing audience.
Back in July, NBC extended the cast’s options, showing that they had every intention of trying to get the show to the air. It was also speculated at the time that if NBC didn’t air on the network, Hulu and Freeform were very interested in the show. It seems much more likely that the reboot would fit in with the streaming service or Freeform, as the show fits in with their target audience.
The Cruel Intentions reboot was first announced back in February when it was revealed that Roger Kumble, who wrote and directed the original movie, would be back for the pilot, where he served as director and executive producer. Lindsey Rosin and Jordan Ross, who worked on Cruel Intentions: The Musical would both serve as writers. It was also confirmed that Sarah Michelle Gellar would reprise her role as Kathryn Merteuil.
The basic premise of the TV show would take place 15 years after the events of the movie, where Annette Hargrove (Reese Witherspoon) ended up getting pregnant with Sebastian’s (Ryan Phillippe) child. Their son, Bash, found his father’s journal and ends up becoming a part of a life he had no idea existed.