HBO Max is taking a practical approach to greenlighting a new prequel series to the beloved 1998 film Practical Magic.
The streaming platform has ordered just a pilot of the show, titled Rules of Magic. Much like the film starring Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock, the show follows two sisters who feel the isolation of being witches cursed with the inability to find love. This time, however, the story is set in the 1960s, with the eccentric aunts Franny and Jet (played by Stockard Channing and Dianne Wiest in the film) taking the lead. While the sisters become feared and revered, their brother Vincent leaves an unexpected legacy.
The pilot is based on the novels Rules of Magic and Practical Magic, by Alice Hoffman, and will be run by Melissa Rosenberg and Dana Baratta, of Marvel’s Jessica Jones.
HBO Max has also ordered two more pilots, Generation and Red Bird Lane. Generation is created by 17-year-old Zelda Barnz, and co-written with her father, Daniel Barnz, who will direct the pilot. It centers on a group of teens exploring their sexuality and how that tests their conservative background. Girls creator Lena Dunham is a producer on the project.
Red Bird Lane, from Berlin Station writer Sara Gran, focuses on a group of eight strangers who arrive at a house they realize is sinister.
HBO Max will launch in spring 2020.
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