Showtime Confirms 'The L Word' Reboot is in Development

Winnie McCroy READ TIME: 2 MIN.

After many rumors, Showtime has confirmed that a return of the lesbian-themed drama "The L Word," which ran from 2004-2009, is officially in development.

BuzzFeed News reports that the new version will feature an ensemble cast, including three original cast members: Jennifer Beals, Kate Moennig, and Leisha Hailey, who will also serve as executive producers. Other former cast members may also return.

Former "The L Word" creator Ilene Chaiken is set to run a continuation of the show, but not this season: she's busy as the showrunner for the Fox show "Empire."

When asked in April about the rumors of a reboot, Chaiken told BuzzFeed News, "I hear from fans all the time that I should reboot the show," and that she would "love to do it."

And in May, Chaiken, Beals, Moennig, Hailey, and others reunited for Entertainment Weekly's LGBT issue. At the time, Chaiken told EW: "There's certainly a chance. We talk about it all the time. When we went off the air in 2009, I think a lot of people thought, 'Okay, the baton is passed now, and there will be lots of shows that portray lesbian life.' There's really nothing. It feels like maybe it should come back."

But Chaiken has been saying that for quite some time -- long before the eight-episode final season, following the unsolved murder of everyone's favorite character to hate, Jenny (Mia Kirshner).

In fact, she admitted way back in a 2009 Los Angeles Times interview that she wasn't ready for it to be over, saying, "I don't believe it, I don't see it in that way -- I don't know what I'm talking about when I say this," she said. "I hope we'll do an L Word movie -- there's no plan to do an L Word movie. But I would love to do that. I just believe that in some way, the show will live on."


by Winnie McCroy , EDGE Editor

Winnie McCroy is the Women on the EDGE Editor, HIV/Health Editor, and Assistant Entertainment Editor for EDGE Media Network, handling all women's news, HIV health stories and theater reviews throughout the U.S. She has contributed to other publications, including The Village Voice, Gay City News, Chelsea Now and The Advocate, and lives in Brooklyn, New York.

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