True Blood Is Getting A Reboot With A Riverdale Spin

It looks like the good times are getting ready to roll again over at HBO.

According to a report by TVLine, a reboot of the cable giant's contemporary vampire drama True Blood is in development. 

The series, which made great use of its rural Louisiana setting and unique interpretation of vampire lore, originally ran for seven seasons. It starred Oscar-winner Anna Paquin as Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic waitress who finds herself enmeshed in the world of the supernatural after becoming involved with a handsome vampire named Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer). Ryan Kwanten, Rutina Wesley, Alexander Skarsgård, and the late Nelsan Ellis also anchored the show's large ensemble cast.

Alan Ball, best known for his Oscar-winning screenplay for American Beauty and his TV dramas like Six Feet Under, created True Blood, which premiered in 2008. He will reportedly serve as one of the executive producers of the new series. Joining him in those duties are Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, who developed the CW's dark Archie Comics series Riverdale, and Jami O'Brien, the creator of NOS4A2. Aguirre-Sacasa and O'Brien are also rumored to be writing the pilot script.

Aguirre-Sacasa's involvement in the True Blood reboot seems to imply that HBO is looking to create a gritty reimagining of the series ... except, it already doesn't get that much more gritty than the original show, which was known for its over-the-top bloody violence and sexual content. So, what direction could a reboot of True Blood go in, anyway?

True Blood was based on a series of novels originally known as The Southern Vampire Mysteries by American author Charlaine Harris. While the HBO series utilized the characters and larger narrative arcs from the books, it also diverged greatly from them in many ways, especially in the later seasons. Characters like teenage vampire Jessica Hamby (Deborah Ann Woll) were created for the show, while major storylines from the book, such as Sookie's relationship with a were-tiger named Quinn, weren't included in the series.

Details about exactly what approach the reboot will take with re-telling the story haven't been released yet, but it's possible that the new True Blood series will utilize elements of the source material that the original didn't. The reboot could also continue the story where the series left off, as there were only seven seasons of the show, versus 13 total novels in the series. Or it might use Harris' universe and mythology to tell a completely different story.

At present, no cast members from the original True Blood have been rumored to be appearing in the reboot. Back in 2017, Digital Spy asked Stephen Moyer about the possibility of returning to the series. He pointed out a big hurdle to reprising the role as the undead Bill: "I don't think we'd say no, because I think it'd be a giggle. But I'd have to have a facelift or something, because vampires aren't supposed to age!"

Whichever direction the studio goes in, it looks like HBO is ready to quench its viewers' bloodlust once again.