J.J. Abrams has set his first three series at HBO Max via his production company Bad Robot: Duster, a crime series set in the 1970s Southwest; Overlook, a series inspired by Stephen King’s The shining, and an untitled series featuring characters from the DC Comics series Justice League Dark.
HBO Max Orders Three New Series from Bad Robot
“Duster,” Conceived by J.J. Abrams, and “Overlook,” Inspired by Stephen King’s The Shining, Mark First Two Series from Bad Robot Productions Through Warner Bros. Television
Iconic Characters from the DC “Justice League Dark” Comprise Third Series for WarnerMedia’s Highly-Anticipated Streaming Platform
BURBANK, Calif. — April 16, 2020 — HBO Max today announced it has given production commitments for three new high-octane one-hour dramas from J.J. Abrams and Katie McGrath’s Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television Group, marking the first new Bad Robot–produced television projects for HBO Max under the exclusive, wide-ranging content collaboration partnership formed by Bad Robot with HBO Max parent company WarnerMedia in fall 2019.
The first series “Duster,” is to be co-written by J.J. Abrams & LaToya Morgan. Set in the 1970’s Southwest, the life of a gutsy getaway driver for a growing crime syndicate goes from awful to wildly, stupidly, dangerously awful. Morgan is currently a writer on “The Walking Dead”. Previously, she was a co-executive producer and writer of AMC’s “Into the Badlands” and “TURN: Washington’s Spies,” and was a writer for NBC’s “Parenthood” and Showtime’s “Shameless.” Produced by Warner Bros. Television.
The second series, “Overlook,” is a horror-thriller series inspired by and featuring iconic characters from Stephen King’s masterpiece The Shining. “Overlook” explores the untold, terrifying stories of the most famous haunted hotel in American fiction. The project reunites Bad Robot, King and WBTV, who previously collaborated on the acclaimed psychological-horror series “Castle Rock” for Hulu.
The third will be a major series based on DC characters in the “Justice League Dark” Universe, details to be revealed soon.
“What an amazing start to our association with the wildly imaginative Bad Robot team under J.J. and Katie,” said Kevin Reilly, Chief Content Officer, HBO Max and President, TNT, TBS, & truTV. “What could be better than an original J.J. idea and then Warner Bros. letting them loose on iconic I.P. from Stephen King and the DC Universe and to provide more must-have programming on HBO Max.”
All of the Bad Robot series for HBO Max will be executive produced by J.J. Abrams and its Head of Television, Ben Stephenson. Rachel Rusch Rich, Bad Robot’s Executive Vice President of Television will serve as a co-executive producer. Warner Bros. International Television Distribution will be the global distributor for the programs.
Current Bad Robot television series produced through Warner Bros. Television include HBO’s “Westworld” and Hulu’s “Castle Rock,” the upcoming “Demimonde” (to be created by Abrams) and “Lovecraft Country” for HBO, as well as “Lisey’s Story,” “Little Voice” and “My Glory Was I Had Such Friends” for Apple TV+.