EXCLUSIVE: Eric Dean Seaton, who has directed episodes of Superman & Lois, The Flash and Modern Family, is to helm the pilot of CBS’ reboot of Early Edition.
Seaton will also exec produce the pilot episode of the drama, which is a gender-swapped reboot of the late-1990s series.
Written by Melissa Glenn, the new Early Edition follows Beth, played by Alice Eve, an ambitious but uncompromising journalist who starts receiving tomorrow’s newspaper today and finds herself in the complicated business of changing the news instead of reporting it.
2022 CBS Pilots & Series Orders
Eve’s Beth is the Executive Producer of KSEA, a local Seattle TV news station. A journalist/investigative reporter since she was a kid, Beth is very focused on getting the story no matter what — which sometimes puts her at odds with her beloved mentor, Tommy, who believes that the most important thing about a story is the people and its human toll.
It also stars Charles Michael Davis, Jay Ali and Fiona Rene.
Glenn executive produces the reboot with DeVon Franklin via Franklin Entertainment and Bob Brush, who developed the original. Franklin Entertainment’s Jenna Nicholson is co-exec producer of the project, which comes from Sony Pictures Television and Affirm Television — Sony TV and Affirm Films’ co-venture for family, faith, inspirational and aspirational content — in association with CBS Studios.
The original series, which was created by Ian Abrams, Patrick Q. Page and Vik Rubenfeld, aired on CBS from 1996-2000. It was set in Chicago and starred Kyle Chandler as Gary Hobson, a stockbroker who received the Chicago Sun-Times a day in advance and tries to prevent the tragedies described in the paper.
Seaton’s other credits include All American: Homecoming, Legacies, Supergirl, Batwoman, Black-ish, The Goldbergs and Life In Pieces.
With a Daytime Emmy and three NAACP Image Award Nominations, Seaton was a graduate of the CBS’ Directors Program. He is also the creator, writer and publisher of the Legend of the Mantamaji, and Legend of the Mantamaji: Bloodlines graphic novel series and direct of the subsequent live-action short.
Seaton is represented by Paradigm and Artists First.