Bewitched: classic sitcom is being reimagined as an irreverent hourlong show

The classic sitcom Bewitched ran for eight seasons and a total of 254 episodes, premiering on September 17, 1964 and wrapping up on March 25, 1972. A spin-off called Tabitha came and went in 1977, then Bewitched received a big screen reboot back in 2005… and in recent years, Sony has shown that they’re very eager to reboot the property again. Back in 2018, it was announced that Black-ish creator Kenya Barris and writer Yamara Taylor were working on a TV series reboot that would give the concept “an interracial twist”. That didn’t go anywhere. In 2021, it was reported that Terry Matalas (MacGyver) and Travis Fickett (12 Monkeys) had been hired to write the screenplay for a new Bewitched movie. That never made it into production… and apparently the idea has been abandoned, because now Deadline has learned that writer/producer Judalina Neira has signed an overall deal with Sony Pictures Television that’s focused on developing drama series for cable and streaming through her newly launched production company, Famous Last Words Productions. And the first project to come out of this deal is a TV series reimagining of Bewitched.

The original series showed us what happened when a witch married an ordinary mortal man, vowing to lead the life of a typical suburban housewife.

Neira is writing what is described as being an “irreverent hourlong” take on Bewitched. (Episodes of the original show aired in a half-hour time slot.) She will be executive producing the series with The Goldbergs executive producer Doug Robinson and Lauren Moffat of the Sony TV-based Doug Robinson Productions.

Lauren Stein, Head of Creative, Sony Pictures Television had this to say about the Neira deal: “Judalina joined the Sony family with her work on The Boys, and we are incredibly proud of her contributions to supporting creator Eric Kripke’s vision. She brings passion and authenticity and has been such a champion for the representation and growth of Latinx writers — we knew we had to make a deal with her! We are so excited to have her call Sony home and can’t wait for what is to come as we deepen our relationship.“

Neira added: “It’s been such a pleasure telling wicked stories with the team at Sony TV these past few years. I couldn’t be more amped to join forces with them for this next big step in my career. And under our newly launched Famous Last Words Productions, I’m excited to both write and produce a full slate of hooky character-forward shows that dish up delight with bite.“

Neira’s previous credits include working as a writer and story editor on The Flash, where she was also a producer, serving as a writer and supervising producer on Daisy Jones & The Six, being co-executive producer on Gen V, and being a consulting producer on The Morning Show. As mentioned, she has also written for The Boys.

Are you interested in seeing what a modern, irreverent, hourlong show could do with the concept of Bewitched? Share your thoughts on this news by leaving a comment below.