2020 TV Upfronts: The CW announces 2020-2021 TV schedule; see photos and videos

May 14, 2020

by Carla Hay

Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch in “Superman & Lois” (Photo courtesy of The CW)

The CW officially announced its 2020-2021 schedule on May 14, 2020. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the network’s upfront presentation, which traditionally takes place at the New York City Center in New York City, was cancelled. Instead, the announcement was made online. Most of the existing shows had previously been announced as renewed. The CW has renewed these shows that premiered in the 2019-2020 TV season: “Batwoman,” “Nancy Drew,” “Penn & Teller: Fool Us,” “Whose Line Is It Anyway?,” “Masters of Illusion,” “The Outpost,” “Pandora” and “Two Sentence Horror Stories.”

The CW has not yet announced the fates of “Katy Keene” and “Stargirl” (which premiered in the 2019-2020 TV season) and “The 100.” As previously announced, the final season of the long-running series “Supernatural” is set to air in the fall of 2020. “Arrow” aired its final episode in January 2020.

The CW’s new scripted shows for the 2020-2021 TV season are all dramas: “Walker,” “Superman & Lois,” “Kung Fu” and “The Republic of Sarah.” The new alternative/reality show to the lineup is “World’s Funniest Animals.” The CW has also acquired these series that originally aired on other networks or streaming services: “Coroner,” “Dead Pixels,” “Swamp Thing” and “Tell Me a Story.”

The CW will launch its 2020-2021 season in January 2021, with premiere dates to be announced later. Please note that shows picked up but not listed on the schedule below will debut sometime in the 2020-2021 season. These shows include returning shows “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” “Roswell, New Mexico,” “In the Dark” and “The Outpost.”

June 3, 2020 UPDATE: 

The following is an excerpt from a CW press release:

The CW Network announced to the acquisition of the international thriller DEVILS, starring Alessandro Borghi and Patrick Dempsey, adding the series to its Fall 2020 schedule airing on Wednesdays (8:00-9:00pm, ET/PT), followed by the investigative drama CORONER (9:00-10:00pm, ET/PT).

 

Following is The CW’s revised primetime line-up for Fourth Quarter 2020, including the addition of DEVILS now on Wednesdays (8:00-9:00pm, ET/PT). Additional changes to the previously announced Fourth Quarter, include DEAD PIXELS, which will now premiere this Summer, TWO SENTENCE HORROR STORIES moving to Sundays, and MASTERS OF ILLUSION, which is already slated for Fridays this Summer, will remain in same time period for the Fall, while WORLD’S FUNNIEST ANIMALS moves to 9:00pm on Friday.

The following is an excerpt from a CW press release:

The CW FALL 2020 SCHEDULE

All times listed are Eastern/Pacific Time.

MONDAY

8-8:30 p.m. “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”
8:30-9 p.m. “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”
9-10 p.m. “Penn and Teller: Fool Us”

TUESDAY

8-9 p.m. “Swamp Thing”
9-10 p.m. “Tell Me a Story”

WEDNESDAY

8-9 p.m. “Devils”
9-10 p.m. “Coroner”

THURSDAY

8-9 p.m. “Supernatural”
9-10 p.m. “The Outpost”

FRIDAY

8-8:30 p.m. “Masters of Illusion”
8:30-9 p.m. “Masters of Illusion”
9-9:30 p.m. “World’s Funniest Animals”
9:30-10 p.m. “World’s Funniest Animals”

SUNDAY

8-8:30 p.m. “Two Sentence Horror Stories”
8:30-9 p.m. “Two Sentence Horror Stories”
9-10 p.m. “Pandora”

The CW JANUARY 2021 SCHEDULE

All times listed are Eastern/Pacific Time.

MONDAY

8-9 p.m. “All American”
9-10 p.m. “Black Lightning”

TUESDAY

8-9 p.m. “The Flash”
9-10 p.m. “Superman & Lois”

WEDNESDAY

8-9 p.m. “Riverdale”
9-10 p.m. “Nancy Drew”

THURSDAY

8-9 p.m. “Walker”
9-10 p.m. “Legacies”

FRIDAY

8-9 p.m. “Penn and Teller: Fool Us”
9-9:30 p.m. “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”
9:30-10 p.m. “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”

SUNDAY

8-9 p.m. “Batwoman”
9-10 p.m. “Charmed”

NEW DRAMA SERIES

“CORONER”

(previously aired on CBC)

Serinda Swan (pictured at right) in “Coroner” (Photo courtesy of Muse Entertainment Enterprises, Inc.)

CORONER is a character driven one-hour drama about Dr. Jenny Cooper (Serinda Swan, “Ballers”), a recently widowed, newly appointed coroner who investigates any suspicious, unnatural or sudden deaths in Toronto. Each death brings Jenny into a new arena in the city and sparks buzzworthy themes … Jenny taps into her intuition, as much as her intellect and heart, as she solves cases along with the help of Homicide Detective Donovan “Mac” McAvoy (Roger Cross, “Arrow,” “The X-Files”), a man who isn’t afraid of challenging the status quo; pathologist Dr. Dwayne Allen (Lovell Adams-Gray, “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow,” “Power Book II: Ghost”), his assistant River Baitz (Kiley May, “It: Chapter Two”); and Alison Trent (Tamara Podemski, “Run,” “Unsettled”), Jenny’s assistant who keeps it real.

And while Jenny solves mysterious deaths, she also deals with clinical anxiety, a teenage son, Ross (Ehren Kassam, “Degrassi: Next Class,” “Degrassi: The Next Generation”), who is still grieving the death of his father, and the prospect of starting a new relationship with the enigmatic Liam (éric Bruneau, “Trop”). Soulful. Warm. Energy. Coroner.

Executive produced by Morwyn Brebner (“Saving Hope,” “Rookie Blue”), Adrienne Mitchell (“Bellevue,” “Played”), Jonas Prupas (“Collision Course”), Brett Burlock (“Pure,” “Ascension”) and Peter Emerson (“Pure,” “The Firm”), CORONER is a CBC original series produced by Muse Entertainment, Back Alley Films and Cineflix Studios.

“DEVILS”

(previously aired on Sky)

DEVILS is an international thriller that follows Massimo Ruggero (Alessandro Borghi, “The First King: Birth of an Empire,” “Suburra”), the charismatic yet ruthless Head of Trading at NYL, one of the world’s most important investment banks, and his mentor, NYL’s CEO Dominic Morgan (Patrick Dempsey, “The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair”). After Dominic appoints another colleague over Massimo following a bitter promotion battle, Massimo finds himself named prime suspect in a murder investigation. Fighting to clear his name, Massimo becomes involved in an intercontinental financial war and is forced to choose between supporting Dominic or going up against him.

The series also stars Laia Costa (“Victoria,” “Newness”), Kasia Smutniak (“Loro,” “Perfetti Sconosciuti”), Lars Mikkelsen (“The Killing,” “Sherlock”), Malachi Kirby (“Roots”), Paul Chowdhry (“Live at the Apollo,” “Swinging with the Finkels”), Pia Mechler (“Everything Is Wonderful”), Harry Michell (“Chubby Funny”) and Sallie Harmsen (“Blade Runner 2049”).

Based on the novel I Diavoli by Guido Maria Brera, DEVILS is produced by Sky Italia and Lux Vide, in association with Sky Studios, Orange Studio and OCS. Created by Alessandro Sermoneta, Mario Ruggeri, Elena Bucaccio, Guido Maria Brera, Daniele Cesarano, Barbara Petronio, Ezio Abbate, the series is executive produced by Luca Bernabei, Matilde Bernabei, Daniele Passani, Nick Hurran, Sara Melodia, Luisa Cotta Ramosino, Ben Harris, Christopher Lunt & Michael A. Walker, and Nils Hartmann and Sonia Rovai for Sky. DEVILS is produced by Luca Bernabei and directed by Nick Hurran and Jan Maria Michelini. NBCUniversal Global Distribution is handling international distribution of the series on behalf of Sky Studios.

“KUNG FU”

Olivia Liang in “Kung Fu” (Photo by Katie Yu/The CW)

A quarter-life crisis causes a young Chinese-American woman, Nicky Shen (Olivia Liang), to drop out of college and go on a life-changing journey to an isolated monastery in China. But when she returns to San Francisco, she finds her hometown is overrun with crime and corruption and her own parents (Tzi Ma and Kheng Hua Tan) are at the mercy of a powerful Triad. Nicky will rely on her tech-savvy sister (Shannon Dang), pre-med brother (Jon Prasida), Assistant District Attorney and ex-boyfriend (Gavin Stenhouse), and new love interest (Eddie Liu) as well as her martial arts skills and Shaolin values to protect her community and bring criminals to justice … all while searching for the ruthless assassin (Gwendoline Yeo) who killed her Shaolin mentor and is now targeting her.

Inspired by the original series created by Ed Spielman, KUNG FU is from Warner Bros. Television in association with Quinn’s House and Berlanti Productions, with writer/executive producer Christina M. Kim (“Blindspot,” “Lost”) and executive producers Martin Gero (“Blindspot,” “LA Complex”), Greg Berlanti (“Arrow,” “The Flash,” “Riverdale”) and Sarah Schechter (“Arrow,” “The Flash,” “Riverdale”).

“THE REPUBLIC OF SARAH”

The bucolic tranquility of Greylock, New Hampshire is upended when a massive vein of coltan – an incredibly valuable mineral used in tech – is discovered under the town. State-backed mining company Lydon Industries swoops in with plans to extract the mineral … plans that include wiping Greylock off the map. With her friends and family in danger of losing their homes, rebellious high school teacher Sarah Cooper (Stella Baker) vows to stop Lydon’s bulldozers. It won’t be easy. Leading Lydon’s efforts is Sarah’s estranged brother, Danny Cooper (Luke Mitchell).

After enduring a difficult childhood at the hands of his mother, former state senator Ellen Cooper (Megan Follows), Danny is eager to exact his revenge on a community he feels abandoned him. Sarah enlists her friends – fellow teacher Corinne Dearborn (Hope Lauren), police officer Amy “AJ” Johnson (Nia Holloway), and diner manager Grover Simms (Ian Duff) – in the fight against Danny, but there seems to be no way to stop the town’s impending demise … Until Sarah proposes an oddly intriguing solution: Greylock could declare independence. Citing various historical maps, she explains that the land on which Greylock sits was never properly claimed by the United States. If Sarah and her friends can convince the town to vote for independence, Greylock would gain international sovereignty and could protect its land for good.

With the help of a group of supporters that includes three of her teenage students – LA transplant Maya Jimenez (Izabella Alvarez), introspective outsider Tyler Easterbrook (Forrest Goodluck), and preppy “popular girl” Bella Whitmore (Landry Bender) – Sarah and her friends win the vote. And after a federal judge agrees that Greylock isn’t – and never was – part of the United States, the town becomes a new nation. Now, Sarah and her allies must confront an even more daunting task: building a country from scratch.

Executive Produced by Jeffrey Paul King (“Elementary”), Marc Webb (“Why Women Kill), Mark Martin (“Rendition”), Jeff Grosvenor and Leo Pearlman, THE REPUBLIC OF SARAH is a production of CBS Television Studios in association with Fulwell 73 and Black Lamb.

“SUPERMAN & LOIS”

Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch in “Superman & Lois” (Photo courtesy of The CW)

In SUPERMAN & LOIS, after years of facing megalomaniacal supervillains, monsters wreaking havoc on Metropolis, and alien invaders intent on wiping out the human race, the world’s most famous superhero, The Man of Steel aka Clark Kent (Tyler Hoechlin, “Teen Wolf”) and comic books’ most famous journalist, Lois Lane (Elizabeth Tulloch, “Grimm”), come face to face with one of their greatest challenges ever – dealing with all the stress, pressures and complexities that come with being working parents in today’s society. Complicating the already daunting job of raising two boys, Clark and Lois must also concern themselves with whether or not their sons Jonathan (Jordan Elsass, “Little Fires Everywhere”) and Jordan (Alexander Garfin, “The Peanuts Movie”) could inherit their father’s Kryptonian superpowers as they grow older.

Returning to Smallville to handle some Kent family business, Clark and Lois are reacquainted with Lana Lang (Emmanuelle Chriqui, “Entourage”), a local loan officer who also happens to be Clark’s first love, and her Fire Chief husband Kyle Cushing (Erik Valdez, “Graceland”). The adults aren’t the only ones rediscovering old friendships in Smallville as the Kent sons are reacquainted with Lana and Kyle’s rebellious daughter, Sarah (Inde Navarrette, “Wander Darkly”). Of course, there’s never a dull moment in the life of a superhero, especially with Lois’ father, General Samuel Lane (Dylan Walsh, “Nip/Tuck”) looking for Superman to vanquish a villain or save the day at a moment’s notice. Meanwhile, Superman and Lois’ return to idyllic Smallville is set to be upended when a mysterious stranger (Wolé Parks, “All American”) enters their lives.

Based on the characters from DC created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, SUPERMAN & LOIS is written and executive produced by Todd Helbing (“The Flash”) and executive produced by Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, Geoff Johns. The series is from Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.

“SWAMP THING”

(previously aired on DC Universe)

Crystal Reed in “Swamp Thing” (Photo by Brownie Harris/Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.)

SWAMP THING follows Dr. Abby Arcane (Crystal Reed, “Gotham,” “Teen Wolf”) as she investigates what seems to be a deadly swamp-born virus in a small town in Louisiana but when a mysterious creature emerges from the murky marsh, she finds herself facing the nightmares of a supernatural world where no one is safe. The series also stars Virginia Madsen (“Sideways,” “Dune”), Andy Bean (“Power,” “It: Chapter Two”), Henderson Wade (“Riverdale,” “Extant”), Derek Mears (“The Flash,” “Predators”), Maria Sten (“Persuasion,” “Channel Zero”) and Jeryl Prescott (“The Walking Dead,” “Ray Donovan”) with Jennifer Beals (“Flashdance,” “The L Word”) and Will Patton (“Falling Skies,” “Halloween”).

Based on the DC characters created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson, SWAMP THING is produced by Atomic Monster in association with Warner Bros. Television. The series is executive produced by James Wan (“Aquaman,” “The Conjuring” films), Mark Verheiden (“Battlestar Galactica,” “Constantine”), Gary Dauberman (“It” and “Annabelle” films), Michael Clear (“The Nun,” “Annabelle: Creation”) and Len Wiseman (“Lucifer,” “Sleepy Hollow”).

“TELL ME A STORY”

(previously aired on CBS All Access)

Paul Wesley in “Tell Me a Story” (Photo by Michael Parmelee/CBS)

TELL ME A STORY takes the world’s most beloved fairy tales and reimagines them as a dark and twisted psychological thriller. Set in modern-day New York City, the first season of this serialized drama interweaves “The Three Little Pigs,” “Little Red Riding Hood” and “Hansel and Gretel” into an epic and subversive tale of love, loss, greed, revenge and murder.

The cast of the first season of TELL ME A STORY includes James Wolk (“Watchmen,” “Mad Men”), Billy Magnussen (“The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”), Dania Ramirez (“Jumanji: The Next Level,” “Entourage”), Danielle Campbell (“The Originals,” “Runaways”), Dorian Missick (“Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G.”), Michael Raymond-James (“Frontier,” “True Blood”), Davi Santos (“Power Rangers Beast Morphers”), Sam Jaeger (“The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Why Women Kill”), Zabryna Guevara (“Emergence,” “New Amsterdam”) with Paul Wesley (“The Vampire Diaries,” “24”) and Kim Cattrall (“Filthy Rich,” “Sex and the City”).

From Aaron Kaplan’s Kapital Entertainment, TELL ME A STORY season one is written and executive produced by Kevin Williamson alongside Aaron Kaplan, Dana Honor and Liz Friedlander, who directs and executive produces the first two episodes

Exploring an entirely new set of characters, season two of TELL ME A STORY features the stories of three legendary princesses – “Beauty and the Beast,” “Sleeping Beauty” and “Cinderella” – like you’ve never seen them before.

Filmed on location in Nashville, season two of TELL ME A STORY stars Paul Wesley (“The Vampire Diaries”) as Tucker Reed, Carrie-Anne Moss (“The Matrix,” “Jessica Jones”) as Rebecca Pruitt, Odette Annable (“House,” “Supergirl”) as Maddie Pruitt, Eka Darville (“Jessica Jones”) as Beau Morris, Matt Lauria (“Kingdom,” “Friday Night Lights”) as Jackson Pruitt, Natalie Alyn Lind (“The Gifted,” “The Goldbergs”) as Ashley Rose Pruitt and Ashley Madekwe (“Salem,” “Revenge”) as Simone Garland.

In addition, Danielle Campbell (“The Originals”) returns to TELL ME A STORY this season in a recurring role as Olivia Moon. Garcelle Beauvais (“Spider-Man Homecoming”) as Veronica Garland, Caleb Castille (“Wu Tang: An American Saga”) as Ron and Christopher Meyer (“The Affair”) as Derek round out the cast with recurring roles.

“TWO SENTENCE HORROR STORIES”

(previously aired on TheCWTV.com)

Greta Quispe in “Two Sentence Horror Stories” (Photo courtesy of Stage 13)

TWO SENTENCE HORROR STORIES is the critically acclaimed, psychological horror series from award-winning studio Stage 13, created by Vera Miao. Inspired by the viral fan fiction, the anthology series features diverse characters and a different sub-genre of horror in each episode, tapping into universal primal fears while tackling provocative social issues that exist within our modern society.

“WALKER”

Jared Padalecki in “Walker” (Photo courtesy of The CW)

WALKER, a reimagining of the long-running series “Walker, Texas Ranger,” stars Jared Padalecki (“Supernatural”) as Cordell Walker, a widower and father of two with his own moral code, who returns home to Austin after being undercover for two years, only to discover there’s harder work to be done at home. He’ll attempt to reconnect with his creative and thoughtful son (Kale Culley, “Me, Myself and I”) and his headstrong, somewhat rebellious teenaged daughter (Violet Brinson, “Sharp Objects”) and navigate clashes with his family – an ADA brother (Keegan Allen, “Pretty Little Liars”) who stepped in during Walker’s absence, his perceptive mother (Molly Hagen, “Herman’s Head”) and his traditional rancher father (Mitch Pileggi, “The X-Files”).

Walker’s former colleague is now his Ranger Captain, (Coby Bell, “The Game”). Walker finds unexpected common ground with his new partner (one of the first women in Texas Rangers’ history) played by Lindsey Morgan (“The 100”), while growing increasingly suspicious about the circumstances surrounding his wife’s death.

The show also stars Jeff Pierre as Trey Barnett. WALKER is written and executive produced by Anna Fricke (“Being Human,” “Valor”), and executive produced by Dan Lin and Lindsay Liberatore and Jared Padalecki. WALKER is from CBS Television Studios in association with Rideback.

NEW COMEDY SERIES

“DEAD PIXELS”

(previously aired on E4)

Will Merrick in “Dead Pixels” (Photo courtesy of E4)

Created by Jon Brown (“Succession,” “Veep”), DEAD PIXELS follows Meg (Alexa Davies, “Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again”), Nicky (Will Merrick, “Poldark”) and Usman (Sargon Yelda, “Strike”) who are obsessed with the online fantasy game “Kingdom Scrolls.” Meg would happily cut a date short to go home and defend Castle Blackfinger. Nicky thinks the miscasting of Vince Vaughn as Tanadaal in the “Kingdom Scrolls” movie is an international outrage. And Usman has made a plywood lid for his child’s playpen, so he can play the game in peace. Oh, and Nicky definitely isn’t into Meg. That would be a cliché. DEAD PIXELS is split equally between the characters’ tragicomic real lives and their computer-animated misadventures in “Kingdom Scrolls.”

Executive Produced by Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain, Phil Clarke and Jon Brown, DEAD PIXELS is a Various Artists Limited production for Channel 4 that airs on E4 in the UK and distributed by BBC Studios.

NEW ALTERNATIVE SERIES

“WORLD’S FUNNIEST ANIMALS”

WORLD’S FUNNIEST ANIMALS is an all-new series hosted by Elizabeth Stanton (“Popstar This Week”) who, along and her celebrity guest panel, looks at animals doing the funniest things ever caught on video. The series includes viral internet clips of funny animal moments, hilarious animal clips from major motion pictures and your favorite TV series, animal outtakes that surprise the whole cast and crew, videos of babies and pets as well as celebrities and their pets. From Associated Television International, WORLD’S FUNNIEST ANIMALS is from Associated Television International with executive producers David McKenzie, David Martin and Laura McKenzie.

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