TCA: The CW’s Mark Pedowitz Talks Superheroes and Sunday Nights

Beverly Hills, CA -- The CW’s half day of panels at the twice-yearly Television Critics Association tours are generally memorable, but yesterday’s presentation marked the dawn of a new era for the network.  Consider what’s coming in the very near future.  At a time when broadcast television is said to be shrinking, The CW will in a few short weeks open a sixth night with the addition of Sunday programming.  The network will have 17 original scripted series, more than ever before and more than some of the bigger broadcasters.  The annual crossover between the D.C. Comics-based series The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow that ends the fall season will feature the addition of the character Batwoman to its growing universe (with a pilot built around the character to be developed).  Two of the network’s splashiest, multi-award-winning series -- Jane the Virgin and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend -- are headed into their final seasons.  The long-running Supernatural, the last remaining series from the long-defunct network The WB, will reach its 300th episode, while The Flash will hit No. 100.  In the fall the network will debut one of the most promising new broadcast series, All American, a drama about the high school years of former NFL linebacker Spencer Paysinger, who grew up in South Central Los Angeles and attended high school in Beverly Hills.  And at midseason the network will debut a series titled In the Dark that will be a complete departure for the network; a drama about deeply troubled blind woman and her guide dog.