WIRE Buzz: Nancy Drew trades Freddy Prinze Jr. for Scott Wolf; CBS orders Evil; Fox calls neXt

TV news can't stop, won't stop, as our latest WIRE Buzz finds a surprise early replacement on The CW's live-action Nancy Drew series, a new supernatural thriller from CBS, and a new Fox series wading into the murky ethics of AI.

Freddie Prinze Jr. (Scooby-Doo) is out and Scott Wolf (Everwood) is in over at The CW. The network, which caters to a younger demographic, announced on Tuesday a series order for its live-action adaptation of the beloved Nancy Drew books. Wolf will take over the role of Carson Drew, the teen sleuth's father, an attorney who has become estranged from his daughter after the death of his wife.

Kennedy McMann will play the role of Nancy Drew in what could be a breakout role for the actress. The 18-year-old sleuth is a recent high school graduate who seems to have her entire life ahead of her before tragedy strikes. Nancy stays home for another year to do some digging herself. She finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation and uncovering secrets about her dad's past. The series, unlike other adaptations, will purportedly have a supernatural twist.

Don't fret too much about this early change. Wolf and Prinze Jr. have both said the change is amicable and the result of the series' creators wanting to take the show in a different direction. The series comes to us from Gossip Girl alums Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage.

(via The Hollywood Reporter)

CBS is getting Evil. No, really. They've ordered a television drama series called Evil that pits science against religion and the origin of evil. The psychological mystery is giving us some serious X-Files vibes.

The premise involves a skeptical female forensic psychologist who joins a priest-in-training and a carpenter to investigate and assess the Church’s backlog of supposed miracles, demonic possessions, and unexplained phenomena. Evil comes from the husband-and-wife duo Michelle and Robert King (The Good Wife), who will write and executive-produce for CBS Television Studios.

Evil will have some solid genre star power, too. Katja Herbers (Westworld), Mike Colter (Jessica Jones), Aasif Mandvi (The Daily Show), and Michael Emerson (Lost) are all attached to the series.

(via Deadline)

Artificial Intelligence is coming for us -- well, at least if Fox has anything to say about it. The television network has ordered a new drama series called neXt, which pits a Silicon Valley A.I. creation against the rest of the world. Ah, sounds comforting, doesn't it?

The pioneering inventor realizes his creation could go rogue and destroy everything we know and love. To prevent a global catastrophe, he teams up with a cybercrime agent to fight "a villain unlike anything we’ve ever seen," according to Variety.

The series will star John Slattery (Mad Men, Iron Man 2), Fernanda Andrade (Fallen), Michael Mosley (Ozark), and Jason Butler Harner (Ozark). Manny Coto (24, Star Trek) is the writer and executive producer, with Charlie Gogolak (Her) also executive-producing. 20th Century Fox Television and Zaftig Films will produce along with Fox Entertainment.

(via Variety)

By the looks of it, we're going to be parked on our couches in front of the television until next spring. What upcoming new shows are you most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments!