Lucifer Makes Fox Schedule With Midseason 2016 Premiere

Add another comic book-based TV schedule to the 2015-16 season, even though this one won’t debut until next year.

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Fox has picked up Lucifer, based on the DC/Vertigo character of the same name, for a series order. However, it won’t make an appearance in the network’s primetime lineup until 2016, meaning it could quite possibly replace a drama that has failed by then. Three new hour-long shows will hit the Fox schedule in the fall, including Minority Report, a TV version of the Tom Cruise movie, Scream Queens and Rosewood.

The series will star Tom Ellis, most recently seen on the short-lived USA show Rush. As its title suggests, Lucifer is about the fallen angel of Biblical fame, but set in the present day after he decides he no longer wants to be ruler of Hell. Instead, he settles in Los Angeles, perhaps enjoying the irony of setting up shop in the City of Angels and running a nightclub. These elements sound like they’re straight out of the comic series of the same name that ran during the early 2000s.

Of course since this is network TV, we’re getting a procedural element as well. Here’s the complete premise from Fox:

"The Devil has come to Los Angeles…Based upon the characters created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth and Mike Dringenberg for DC Entertainment’s Vertigo imprint, LUCIFER is the story of the original fallen angel. Bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell, LUCIFER MORNINGSTAR (Tom Ellis, “Merlin”) has abandoned his throne and retired to L.A., where he owns Lux, an upscale nightclub. Charming, charismatic and devilishly handsome, Lucifer is enjoying his retirement, indulging in a few of his favorite things – wine, women and song – when a beautiful pop star is brutally murdered outside of Lux. For the first time in roughly 10 billion years, he feels something awaken deep within him as a result of this murder. Compassion? Sympathy? The very thought disturbs him – as well as his best friend and confidante, MAZIKEEN aka MAZE (Lesley-Ann Brandt, “The Librarians”), a fierce demon in the form of a beautiful young woman. The murder attracts the attention of LAPD homicide detective CHLOE DANCER (Lauren German, “Chicago Fire”), who initially is dismissive of Lucifer. But she becomes intrigued by his talent for drawing out people’s secrets and his desire to dispense justice, doling out punishment to those who deserve it. As they work together to solve the pop star’s murder, Lucifer is struck by Chloe’s inherent goodness. Accustomed to dealing with the absolute worst of humanity, Lucifer is intrigued by Chloe’s apparent purity and begins to wonder if there’s hope for his own soul yet. At the same time, God’s emissary, the angel AMENADIEL (DB Woodside, “Suits,” “24”), has been sent to Los Angeles to convince Lucifer to return to the underworld…can the Devil incarnate be tempted toward the side of Good, or will his original calling pull him back toward Evil?"

Could be really compelling, could be extremely disappointing. Using characters from The Sandman is never a bad idea, but there are a lot of ways you can mess them up. At least they’ve got themselves a good Devil, as Ellis should be perfect for the part.

The most recent attempt at a Vertigo series, Constantine, managed only 13 episodes on NBC and is now looking for another landing spot in order to survive. The bar for success should be slightly lower on Fox, especially if Lucifer debuts in January, but it’ll still have to find an audience pretty quickly. I’d like to see it succeed, if only to prove that comic book shows not based on super heroes can be viable.

(via Zap2It by way of Comic Book Resources)

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