There are a number of TV shows being announced now. Some star women in leading roles, some have more than one woman out in front, and some even boast women of a color other than white. Let’s have a look at them.
Supergirl
Supergirl begins this fall on CBS. We’ve been given a rather lengthy first look at the series. We may be able to skip ahead to the second episode, this trailer tells so much. As a bonus, if we start the season with episode 2, the whole wardrobe problem will be solved.
Melissa Benoist is Supergirl. Chyler Leigh plays her sister Alex. Mehcad Brooks is Jimmy (sorry, James) Olsen. Calista Flockhart plays Supergirl’s boss. The boss is some kind of horrible parody on every bitchy boss ever imagined by a male writer since the beginning of the Planet Krypton. (Really, fellas, can’t anyone do better than that?)
I’ve mentioned Supergirl a couple of times previously on this blog, if you want more in depth details check out Big Casting News for Supergirl and Brain Dump: Supergirl, Exotic Marigold Hotel, The Blacklist.
So here she is, the female superhero we’ve long awaited. If I were inclined to mangle famous poems, I might say,
so much depends
upon
a red skirt
with cape
glazed with pop
culture
beside the endless
patriarchy.
The Catch
Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers are behind The Catch, which was created by Jennifer Schuur. This is a thriller centered on the brilliant Alice Martin (Mireille Enos). She’s a fraud investigator who’s about to be the victim of fraud herself. It sounds like a season long hunt for the bad guy, mixed in with other cases.
The Catch also stars Alimi Ballard as Evan, Damon Dayoub, Jay Hayden, Jacky Ido, Bethany Joy Lenz, Rose Rollins and Elvy Yost. Props to The Catch – although the star is white, there is ample diversity in the rest of the cast.
Although Mareille Enos is capable of super intense acting, I’m most looking forward to seeing Rose Rollins on my TV again.
Quantico
I think Quantico is going to take the lead on diversity. The main character is played by Priyanka Chopra, an award winning veteran of a number of Indian films. Aunjanue Ellis also has top billing on this FBI story. The plot centers around a number of recruits at the FBI training center in Quantico. Jake McLaughlin plays Ryan Booth.
Of all the previews shown in this post, I like this one the best simply because of the diversity issue. But why is there only one show like this? (I’ll mention Proof later, it helps.)
Blindspot
Blindspot is going to be one of those season long searches for the truth like Blacklist or Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. It’s about a woman who “wakes up” with no memory of her past life. She’s completely covered with fresh tattoos.
Jaimie Alexander stars as Jane Doe, with Ashley Johnson and Sullivan Stapleton backing her up in this tale about a vast international conspiracy.
Heartbreaker
Heartbreaker is a medical drama starring Melissa George. Other doctors surrounding the brilliant heart surgeon are played by Dave Annable, Don Hany, Shelley Conn and D.L. Hughley.
Jill Gordon and Amy Brenneman are among the producers for Heartbreaker.
Angel from Hell
Angel from Hell starts on CBS this fall. Jane Lynch looks happy about it, judging from her Twitter feed.
This Fall!! Thursdays! 9:30pm! @angelfromhell pic.twitter.com/AHvPOz64Hu
— Jane Lynch (@janemarielynch) May 14, 2015
The show will be on Thursday evenings, a tough slot for any show of interest to women, especially a half hour comedy. It stars Jane Lynch, Maggie Lawson, Kevin Pollak and Kyle Bornheimer. Other information is a little skimpy at this point, but the only names I can find for writers and directors are male names.
Angel from Hell doesn’t premier until November, so there will be plenty of time to fill in the details.
I love that wild hair on Jane Lynch. Perfect.
Elsewhere on Old Ain’t Dead
There are other female-led series I’ve talked about before on the blog. If you missed those posts, here they are.
- I’ve mentioned Proof several times: here, here, and here. The star of that show is biracial.
- Here’s the preview for Dark Matter.
- You’ll find the first look at Stitchers here.
I don’t think this is a complete list of the new shows with female leads, but it gives you some female-led shows to consider for your next few months of TV watching.
The Diversity Countdown
Looking just at the starring role in these women’s series, how do we stack up on diversity?
We have
- Melissa Benoist
- Mireille Enos
- Priyanka Chopra
- Jaimie Alexander
- Melissa George
- Jane Lynch
- Jennifer Beals
- Dark Matter names the men first, so I’m not listing anyone from it
- Emma Ishta
I’d say that is a less than outstanding rundown if you’re counting diversity points.
It’s not that I don’t want Melissa Benoist or Jaimie Alexander or the other white women on the list to have great parts. I do. Lots of great parts. I also want lots of great parts for the rest of the female human race.