The CW Developing Drama Based on DC Comics Hero ‘Hourman’

The CW is looking to expand its roster of DC Comics heroes.

The network, already home to Arrow and potentially The Flash, is developing a drama based on the Hourman characters published by the comics giant, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Hourman centers on a brilliant-yet-troubled pharmaceutical analyst who discovers that the visions that have plagued him since childhood are actually glimpses of tragic events occurring one hour in the future. Determined to win back his ex-wife and son, he heroically prevents these tragedies from unfolding, finding both purpose and redemption along the way.

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Michael Caleo (Ironside, The Sopranos) will pen the script and executive produce the drama alongside Dan Lin and Lin Pictures’ head of television, Jennifer Gwartz, for Warner Bros. Television, where the banner is under a new two-year overall deal. 

The Hourman character (aka Rex Tyler) has appeared in three different DC Comics series. The character was first created in April 1940 by Ken Fitch and Bernard Bailey and appeared in Adventure Comics #48. The Hourman later became Rex Tyler’s son, Rick (pictured above), and was created by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas and Todd McFarlane and appeared in DC’s Infinity Inc. #20. The third version of the character (Matthew Tyler) was created by Grant Morrison and Howard Porter and appeared in JLA #12. The 1997 character was an android character based on Rex Tyler.

The Hourman character has tied to the Justice Society of America, Freedom Fighters, All-Star Squadron and the Justice League.

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For DC, this marks the latest title to be put into development so far this season. In addition to The CW’s Arrow back-door pilot The Flash — starring Glee‘s Grant Gustin — NBC is adapting Constantine with David Goyer. Fox also handed out a straight-to-series commitment for Gotham, a Batman prequel series focused on Commissioner Gordon from The Mentalist boss Bruno Heller.

Meanwhile, The CW is still mulling Amazon, a potential Wonder Woman prequel series recounting the early days of the Justice League heroine.

Caleo is repped by ICM Partners, Management 360 and Morris Yorn. Lin (Sherlock Holmes) is repped by WME and UFUSE.

E-mail: Lesley.Goldberg@THR.com
Twitter: @Snoodit