Spawn Spin-off In Development in BBC America with Kevin Smith Directing

Twenty years after it showed on our movie screens, the universe of Todd McFarlane's Spawn will get a new lease on life - this time through BBC America. The tortured soul from hell, though, will not be front and center this time.The heroes of this show are the titular Sam and Twitch, two very human, but tough NYPD cops who tangle with the worst side of the supernatural. Blame that on their run-ins with Spawn. Kevin Smith has been tasked to write, direct, and produce.

No exact word yet on the number of episodes, or when it will actually air. The projected series is still in development. In her interview with Deadline, BBC America GM and president Sarah Barnett gives us enough tidbits to stoke some excitement:

" ... it'sToddMcFarlane's comic book series about these big-city homicide detectives who face a series of super grizzly crimes that are connected to the occult. Its kind of frightening and sort of gallows humor. It's, again, procedural, but in a very modern, contemporary way. So each episode is closed ended, although there are certain character-serialized aspects to the storytelling."

Smith's involvement is one cause for excitement. He has helmed superhero shows like The Flash and was active in a Supergirl episode which all have gotten some buzz. Sam and Twitch, though, sounds darker than his stints in the CW shows. It has the gloom and doom of Gotham, the police procedural of Law and Order, and the monsters of Grimm.

It's an unusual combination, but if anyone can spin this Spawn spin-off into this century, it would be Smith.

In case you want to walk down that particular dank memory lane, catch the trailer of Spawn below.