Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was initially a developing television series on The CW, based on the teenage witch, and notable Archie Comics character, Sabrina Spellman. The series is set to be a spin-off of the CW's Riverdale, a series based in the same universe, that centers around a group of teenagers (Archie Andrews, Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper, and Veronica Lodge) living in a town of the same name. On September 20, 2017, the network announced that the spin-off series is in development, with it being eyed as a companion series to Riverdale for the 2018-19 season.

Despite initial reports that the series was undergoing development at the CW, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina received a 2-season order at Netflix. The streaming giant has granted the now-unnamed project a sizable two-season, 20-episode, straight-to-series order. It will consist of two, 10-episode seasons that will shoot back-to-back with the first batch filming from February to June and second from June to October. While the writers' room opened on December 4th, a premiere date has yet to be released. Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa will act as executive producer alongside Riverdale collaborators Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and Archie Comics CEO Jon Goldwater. Lee Toland Krieger will direct. The drama hails from Warner Bros. Television-based Berlanti Productions.

While the Sabrina spinoff was originally developed at The CW, a co-venture between Warner Bros. and CBS, the network showed greater interest on another witchy drama in the pipeline: the "Charmed" reboot that is currently under redevelopment.

"The move to Netflix is widely considered a win within the halls of Warner Bros., as the platform switch — which was discussed first with The CW's board along with execs from both of its parent studios — allows Warners to retain 100% ownership of the series from WB-based producer Greg Berlanti. Had the Sabrina project remained at The CW, Warner Bros. would have had to share ownership — and, more importantly, profits — with corporate cousin CBS, as part of The CW's business model. (Riverdale is a co-production between the two.)"

Warner Bros. is seeking to gain full control of 100% of their shows, and that is said to drive a lot of their decision-making. Other Riverdale spinoffs could still land at The CW, as the Sabrina spinoff is merely one of many potential projects being eyed by Riverdale showrunner and Archie Comics chief creative officer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.

Premise
"The hourlong drama reimagines the story of Sabrina the Teenage Witch as a dark coming-of-age tale that traffics in horror, the occult and witchcraft, naturally. The new iteration is described as in the vein of Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist and finds Sabrina wrestling to reconcile her dual nature as a half-witch, half-mortal while fighting the evil forces that threaten her, her family and the daylight world humans inhabit."

Synopsis
To Be Added

Main cast

 * Kiernan Shipka as Sabrina Spellman
 * Ross Lynch as Harvey Kinkle
 * Lucy Davis as Hilda Spellman
 * Miranda Otto as Zelda Spellman
 * Chance Perdomo as Ambrose Spellman
 * Jaz Sinclair as Rosalind Walker
 * Michelle Gomez as Mary Wardwell/Madam Satan
 * Tati Gabrielle as Prudence

Recurring Cast

 * Bronson Pinchot as George Hawthorne
 * Richard Coyle as Father Blackwood
 * Adeline Rudolph as Agatha
 * Abigail Cowen as Dorcas

Unspecified Cast

 * Unknown as Salem

Writers

 * Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa

Directors

 * Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
 * Lee Toland Krieger

Producers

 * Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
 * Lee Toland Krieger
 * Greg Berlanti
 * Sarah Schechter
 * Jon Goldwater

Character Descriptions

 * Sabrina Spellman: Female, Open ethnicity, legal 18 or 18+ to play 16. Sabrina is an empowered young woman, half-human, half-witch, struggling to reconcile her dual natures. She is just beginning her dark education as a sorceress, even as she tries to maintain some semblance of a normal life as a sophomore at Baxter High. Sabrina’s intelligent, compassionate, and brave to the point of recklessness. She challenges witch-doctrine at every turn. She is fiercely loyal to her family and friends; wickedly funny; and in the middle of a star-crossed romance with her classmate Harvey Kinkle. Sabrina is all that stands between us and the Forces of Darkness that threaten our world. SERIES LEAD.
 * Hilda Spellman: Female, late 30s to early 40s, All Ethnicities. Hilda is the kinder of the Spellman sisters who are raising Sabrina, though her nurturing nature belies a more ruthless side. She is a healer, a potion-maker, sweet-as-pie until you cross her or anyone she loves. Operating the local funeral home, the sisters hide their witchery from the world while teaching Sabrina spells and incantations at home…ASP SERIES REGULAR
 * Zelda Spellman: Female, late 30s to early 40s, All Ethnicities. Zelda is the harsher of the Spellman sisters who helped raise Sabrina, though her sternness and tough facade might be hiding a more…mothering soul. Unlike Hilda, Zelda claims that she has never known love—her devotion to the Dark Lord is all-consuming—which is why people looking for a love-potion go to Hilda; those looking to make a spite-jar go to Zelda…ASP SERIES REGULAR
 * Ambrose Spellman: Male, early 20s, African American or East Indian, British. Ambrose is Sabrina’s “cousin” and a necromancer. He is witty, puckish, pan-sexual—and loves being a witch. Trapped in the funeral home due to a binding spell, Ambrose lives in the mortuary’s attic and acts as one of Sabrina’s partners in crime…10/13 SERIES REGULAR
 * Harvey Kinkle: Male, Legal 18 or 18+ to play high school, All Ethnicities. Sabrina’s boyfriend, the Prince Charming of this dark fairy tale. Harvey is a young man in a small town starting to figure out his place in the larger world. He is politically minded, idiosyncratic, attractive, charismatic, and fun. Handsome and romantic, Harvey’s also smart, woke, and compassionate. In the present-day, he is part of Greendale’s counter-culture youth. He has no idea that he is descendant from a long line of witchhunters…ASP SERIES REGULAR
 * Rosalind: Female, legal 18 or 18+ to play 16, African American. Rosalind is Sabrina’s human best friend. Brash, empowered, and outspoken like her Black Panther parents, Rosalind is keeping a secret from Sabrina and the rest of her classmates—that she is not-so-slowly losing her eyesight, a fact that will put her immortal soul in jeopardy…10/13 SERIES REGULAR
 * Mary Wardwell AKA Madam Satan: Female, 30s, Diverse. A mousy teacher at Baxter High, Ms. Wardwell is a smart, quirky mentor to Sabrina. However, her persona quickly gets taken over by Madam Satan at the start of the pilot, and she becomes a sultry, cunning manipulator. Essentially the Devil’s Handmaiden, Wardwell’s “lessons” are designed to corrupt Sabrina per the Devil’s agenda…ASP SERIES REGULAR

Production

 * Casting began for the developing series on September 27, 2017.
 * News on the spin-off series being ordered to pilot was released on October 12, 2017. It is currently set to be shot in in Vancouver during Spring of 2018. However, there's still no news on whether it will be a separate pilot or a backdoor pilot on an episode of Riverdale.
 * Netflix announced that the unnamed series had received a straight-to-series, two season order on December 1, 2017.
 * The writers' room opened on December 4, 2017.
 * Filming for the first season begins on March 19, 2018 and is scheduled to end on December 5, 2018.
 * Originally, it was supposed to start on February 19, 2018 and to end in October.
 * On January 17, 2018, it was announced that there are no plans as of yet for a crossover with Riverdale.
 * However, this does not mean that a crossover has been completely ruled out. In a recent interview with KSiteTV, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa revealed that any potential crossovers are to be determined.
 * On January 23, 2018, the title of the premiere was revealed to be "Chapter One: October Country".
 * The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina web-television series will be filming in the City of Surrey in Cloverdale, British Columbia, Canada. "WBTV Canada Production Services Inc. will be filming the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina in Surrey from March until December 2018. A few recurring filming locations have been selected in Cloverdale, including the building formerly known as Dann's Electronics at 5657 176 Street. The storefront will be transformed into a main character's business. The production company is planning to use the 176 Street location two to three times per month while filming, in one to two day periods."