FOX Picks Up Ryan Murphy Comedy-Horror Anthology
Looks like Ryan Murphy isn't letting the upcoming final season of Glee be the end of his dealings with FOX.
Scream Queens, a new comedy-horror anthology series from Glee creators Murphy and Brad Falchuk, has been given a straight-to-series order by FOX.
The 15-episode hourlong comedy is being scheduled to premiere in the fall of 2015, with season one focusing on a college campus plagued by a series of mysterious murders. Subsequent seasons, should the show prove successful, will focus on new settings and storylines. Think American Horror Story, but purposely funny.
“I knew I wanted to work with Brad and Ian again on something comedic, and we are having a blast writing Scream Queens,” said Murphy in a statement. “We hope to create a whole new genre — comedy-horror — and the idea is for every season to revolve around two female leads. We’ve already begun a nationwide search for those women, as well as 10 other supporting roles, and we’re very grateful to [Fox TV Group chairmen and CEOs] Dana [Walden] and Gary [Newman] for their enthusiastic support.”
“One of our top priorities at the network has been to get Ryan Murphy to create a new series for Fox. We loved every element of the pitch for this show — the genre-bending concept, which blends true horror with big comedic moments; the diverse and unforgettable characters and reuniting the phenomenal creative team that delivered Glee,” added Walden and Newman. “Scream Queens will go straight to series. It’s a huge commitment and an expression of our faith in Ryan. We are ecstatic to have him, along with Brad, Ian and Dante as our partners on this exciting ride.”
Scream Queens is the first series order for FOX's 2015-2015 broadcast season, and the second straight-to-series order for next year on network television, as NBC has already giving a straight-to-series orders for Jennifer Lopez's cop drama Shades of Blue, anthology series Manhunt, and limited series Heroes: Reborn.
Ultimately, I don't see how this would be a bad move on FOX's part, given that anthology series appear to be fairly en vogue, at the moment, between American Horror Story, True Detective and the aforementioned Manhunt. That said, I would imagine it's going to be difficult for Murphy to strike a balance between genuine comedy and outright weirdness. You can get away with being obtuse and zany on cable TV, but network television often needs to be more easily digested. This isn't always the case, granted, but I could easily see FOX wanting to tone down the weirdness a bit, which would somewhat defeat the purpose of ordering the show in the first place. But I guess we'll find out if it's worth the wait in a year's time. Hell, with the 2014-2015 season having just started, I'm not even trying to think about 2015-2016 anyway.
So what do you think of the show? Would an American Horror Story comedy series work? Or is a half-hour just not enough time to tell the ambitious, long-form stories Murphy and co. tell? Sound off in the comments!
Credit: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic