HBO Max is officially working on the case with Dead Boy Detectives.
The streamer has given the project, which is based on a DC comic by Neil Gaiman and Matt Wagner, a series order. Flight Attendant creator Steve Yockey adapted the comic and will serve as showrunner on the series from Warner Bros. TV and Berlanti Productions.
George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri play the title characters, dead British teenagers Edwin Payne and Charles Rowland. According to the series’ logline, Dead Boy Detectives is “a new take on a ghost story that explores loss, grief and death through the lenses of Edwin Payne and Charles Rowland… and their very much alive friend Crystal Palace.” It’s like a classic crime show, only darker and acidic.”
Kassius Nelson (Last Night in Soho) plays Crystal; The series also stars Briana Cuoco, Ruth Connell – reprising her role as Night Nurse on HBO Max’s Doom Patrol, Yuyu Kitamura and Jenn Lyon.
“We are excited to continue expanding into the DC Universe with Steve, Jeremy [Carver] and the Berlanti team with this exciting new take on a detective series,” said Sarah Aubrey, Head of Original Content at HBO Max can’t wait to follow the supernatural detectives into the bright mysteries to come.”
Yockey said, “I’ve had an obsession with this comic for a long time, so it’s a real passion project. And Jeremy, Berlanti Productions, DC, WBTV, HBO Max – they all encourage me to make every wild, bizarre and disturbing decision. The result will be really gritty fun.”
Dead Boy Detectives is the second collaboration between Yockey and Berlanti Productions, who are also producing The Flight Attendant. Yockey and Carver (Supernatural, Doom Patrol) are executive producers with Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter of Berlanti Productions. Lee Toland Krieger directed and executive produced the pilot; Former President of Berlanti Productions David Madden is also an EP on the pilot.
Yockey, Carver, Berlanti Productions and Krieger all have overall contracts with Warner Bros. TV.