Twice a year, the Television Critic's Association holds a week-long series of panels with producers and network executives to preview what is on the slate. All week, we will cull together the most interesting bits of genre television news so you don't have to slog through crap on The Biggest Loser to get to the good stuff.
Bates Motel
A&E has announced a premiere date for it's highly anticipated drama: Monday, March 18th at 10pm. The series, which will have an initial 10-episode run, promises to be "inspired by" Hitchcock; not an "homage." "The mythology that you think is what dictates the relationship between Norma and Norman is not what it's going to turn out to be," promises showrunner Carlton Cuse. Cuse also states that he doesn't foresee Marion Crane (the character made famous in Psycho by Janet Leigh and the shower) showing up on the series at all. The pilot seems to promise many a gruesome mystery, including the death of Norman Bates's father, and a diary that Norman discovers when his mom buys the motel, that details the torture and murder of a girl.
Hannibal and Mockingbird Lane
Some troubling news regardng Bryan Fuller's serial killer tale: NBC still doesn't have a premiere date for it. NBC chairman Bob Greenblatt says of the dark serial killer drama that if it doesn't make it to air by the end of the season, it could "fit nicely" into summer season. His comments of "It's very well crafted" seems like the execs found it a little too dark, and just don't know what the hell to do with it. Hannibal is "well into' production on its 13-episode commitment, so they have to do something with it. NBC does not have a great track record with Fuller. His The Munsters reboot, Mockingbird Lane, which was years (and allegedly $10 million) in development was sentenced to a last-minute Halloween run before officially getting the axe. As for another attempt at a Munsters reboot, Greenblatt says, "I'm not saying we won't maybe try another version of The Munsters again, it's a good idea, we just have to figure out how to get it right." In other words, "Never say never, but it's not going to happen on my watch."
Dracula
As of right now, this is still a go for fall.