Dead Boy Detectives ordered to series at HBO Max

HBO Max announced today that they have ordered Dead Boy Detectives to series. The eight-episode horror detective series is based on characters created by Neil Gaiman and Matt Wagner and aims to tell a fresh take on a ghost story exploring loss, grief, and death.

The Dead Boys Detectives series revolves around Edwin Payne and Charles Rowland, two dead British teenagers, and their very alive friend, Crystal Palace. A press release from HBO Max described it as “a lot like a vintage detective series — only darker and on acid.” Sounds fun. Steve Yockey (The Flight Attendant) wrote the pilot episode of Dead Boy Detectives and will also serve as showrunner of the series. He will also executive produce the series alongside Jeremy Carver, Greg Berlanti, and Sarah Schechter. “I’ve been obsessed with this comic for a long time, so it’s a true passion project,” Yockey said. “And Jeremy, Berlanti Productions, DC, WBTV, HBO Max — they’re all encouraging me to run with every wild, bizarre, and unsettling choice. The result is going to be really dark fun.” Sarah Aubrey, Head of Original Content at HBO Max, said:

We are excited to be expanding further into the DC Universe with Steve, Jeremy and the Berlanti team with this thrilling new spin on a detective series. We were fascinated by the world of the Dead Boy Detectives that Steve and Jeremy first introduced in ‘Doom Patrol,’ and cannot wait to follow the supernatural sleuths in the lurid mysteries to come.

The Dead Boy Detectives previously appeared in an episode of Doom Patrol, but the characters have been recast for the series. George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri (The Lodge) star as Dead Boy Detectives Edwin Payne (Rexstrew) and Charles Rowland (Revri), with Kassius Nelson (Last Night in Soho) also staring as Crystal Palace. Other series stars include Briana Cuoco (The Flight Attendant) as Jenny the Butcher, Ruth Connell (Supernatural) as the Night Nurse, Yuyu Kitamura (The Expatriates) as Niko, and Jenn Lyon (Justified) as Esther.