Tom Swift - What We Know So Far

The CW's "Nancy Drew" series brought a legacy character into the modern world for a smart supernatural mystery show. Fans have reason to celebrate as the series will return with a third season. But besides continuing the story of Ms. Drew, the latest telling of the "Nancy Drew" series also successfully expanded its world. During the Season 2 episode "The Celestial Visitor," Nancy (Kennedy McMann) got the chance to team up with another legacy character, billionaire inventor Tom Swift (Tian Richards).

For fans of the original novels published by Stratemeyer Syndicate (via Deadline), Nancy teaming with Tom was a bit of a reunion in a way. Just as she has teamed up often with the Hardy Boys, Nancy has also had adventures with Tom. Recently, all four of the characters were spotted in Dynamite's "Nancy Drew And The Hardy Boys: The Big Lie" comic. While this episode may have served as a proper introduction for another legacy character, it also served as a backdoor pilot for another spinoff for The CW's "Nancy Drew" universe. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Tom Swift will officially get his own eponymous series on The CW.

Here's everything we know so far.

While it is known that a "Tom Swift" series is in development, the show still does not have a specific release date. Deadline reported that the "Tom Swift" series had been picked up for the 2021-2022 schedule. Since we were just introduced to the character in May 2021, and an announcement has finally been made regarding plans for CW to pick up the show, it's unlikely that we'll get the series sometime this year. Instead, it seems more likely that we could see "Tom Swift" debut in spring or summer 2022.

Still, that's not too long of a wait, and as production continues, we'll likely see a planned date sooner rather than later. The CW likely used the episode to gauge reaction to the character's introduction. As The Hollywood Reporter noted, production on the spinoff series started in October 2020. However, the character made his appearance in "Nancy Drew," and CW placed the spinoff in consideration and also ordered a pilot script.

While much of the cast hasn't been revealed yet for "Tom Swift," we do know that Tian Richards is reprising his role as the titular character. As Richards told TV Line, he enjoyed the chance at playing a Black gay billionaire who also happens to be a science whiz as it bucks the status quo in television and puts a unique spin on a character with a long history.

"Tom gets to exist in all of his beauty and pride," Richards said. "He gets to grow up in a family with a legacy, to have endless possibilities in education and tech and inventing. He gets to realize himself for himself, and that's beautiful for anyone to see."

Per Deadline, LeVar Burton voiced Tom's A.I. partner Barclay in the "Nancy Drew" appearance, and it's expected that the actor will also reprise his role for the series. It's also likely that Nancy (Kennedy McMann) could return the favor and make an appearance in Tom's world. We already know that The CW's Arrowverse is keen with crossovers between its shows, so why wouldn't something similar happen again with Nancy and Tom? 

On the production side, Deadline reports that Melinda Hsu Taylor, Noga Landau, and Cameron Johnson — who are credited as the creators for this version of Swift — will also serve as executive producers along with "Nancy Drew" co-creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage.

While the original "Nancy Drew" and the "Hardy Boys" novels placed the young heroes as detectives solving cases, the "Tom Swift" novels thrust the character into the science and tech realm. Swift often went on adventures with his latest invention somehow heavily involved (via TomSwift.net). Based on the proposed plot synopsis for The CW's version of the character, it looks like it will still pull from the main idea of the original novels, but with a modern twist.

According to Deadline, the "Tom Swift" series sees the character dealing with the world of sci-fi conspiracies and matching wits with an Illuminati-like group. Tom will be on the search for his missing father while having adventures that focus on unexplained incidents.

While speaking with TV Line, Richards said that "Tom Swift" will not only explore the tech world but will also put the spotlight on a young Black gay man growing up while thrown into a mysterious world of adventure. The actor also said that the show will give insight into the world of the Black 1 percent and elite.