The CW Won't be Making a Battle Royale TV Series

One of the more surprising stories in the TV world last summer was that The CW was considering a TV version of Battle Royale . The ultra violent Japanese novel and movie -- about school children being put on an island in order to kill one another – would almost certainly have a controversial and difficult time as an ongoing American series on any outlet, especially a broadcast network like CW.

Today, The CW’s president, Mark Pedowitz, spoke to the press at the TCA (Television Critics Association) press tour and was asked whether it was safe to assume that, in the wake of tragedies like the shootings in Aurora and Newton, they wouldn’t be going forward with Battle Royale.

Replied Pedowitz, “It's very funny. It took on a life of its own. There was one phone call last summer before the press tour just to see if the books were available. They were not or we were not able to do anything. At this point we are not planning to do anything with Battle Royale.”

Later, asked by another reporter if he could clarify if current events had any connection to them not moving forward, Pedowitz was firm in stating Battle Royale never had any real life at The CW, saying, “Nothing occurred. There was nothing to talk about. It was just nothing occurred. And it pre-dated the current events that occurred. So there was no development, no, nothing. Nothing happened.”

Why The Hunger Games isn’t a Battle Royale Ripoff

Pedowitz has previously spoken about The CW's wish to have a "a show that has a Game of Thrones/Hunger Games tone", and their inquiry into adapting Battle Royale was one avenue they explored. Last year, the network made a pilot, The Selection, about a future where young female candidates are chosen to compete against one another to become the next queen. While they didn't pick up that pilot, The CW went back into development on a new version. Asked about The Selection today, Pedowitz said, "The [new] script just came in. It's very well done. We have not made our pilot choices, and yes, it’s still in contention."

Source : ign[dot]com