‘Girls on the Bus’ Series From Julie Plec & Greg Berlanti Jumps to CW From Netflix

Julie Plec, Chasing Hillary Book Cover, Greg Berlanti
Theo Wargo/Getty Images; Amazon; Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images for SAG-AFTRA Foundation

Julie Plec and Greg Berlanti‘s series The Girls on the Bus is changing its route from Netflix to The CW for its debut season.

Based on the best-selling book Chasing Hillary from New York Times journalist Amy Chozick, who is set to co-write the series, The Girls on the Bus is inspired by a chapter of the same name from the novel. It centers on four female journalists who follow a parade of flawed presidential candidates, dealing with friendship, love, and scandal along the journey. Despite the book’s subject matter, the series is said not to be about Hillary Clinton or the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

A bidding war for the rights to the novel took place two years ago, with the drama eventually landing at Netflix, which had given the project a series order back in August 2019. However, as first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, after production on the show was postponed due to the pandemic, Netflix quietly dropped the series with potential worries about the show’s political backdrop.

The series has now moved to The CW, where it is expected to be readjusted to fit the network’s younger-skewing audience. Plec remains on as a writer alongside Chozick, with Berlanti and his Berlanti Productions partner Sarah Schechter and head of television David Madden all executive producing.

Plec and Berlanti have a long history with The CW, having produced various shows for the network over the years. Plec is perhaps most known as the showrunner for the popular supernatural teen drama The Vampire Diaries and its spinoff The Originals; she also serves as executive producer on Legacies and Roswell, New Mexico.

Berlanti Productions, meanwhile, produces several programs for The CW, including Riverdale, All American, Kung Fu, and multiple DC Comics shows.

The Girls on the Bus, TBA, The CW