Sci-Fi Bulletin: Exploring the Universes of SF, Fantasy, Horror and Spy-fi!

AMC Studios is opening a writers’ room to explore a potential new series based on Anne Rice’s “Lives of the Mayfair Witches” for AMC+ and AMC.

This would be the second series in an expanding Anne Rice universe, following the recent greenlight of “Interview with the Vampire,” which is slated for a 2022 premiere. The trilogy of books comprises The Witching Hour, Lasher and Taltos, first published between 1990 and 1994 with some characters then crossing over to the Vanpire Chronicles series.

Esta Spaulding (“Masters of Sex,” “On Becoming a God in Central Florida”) and Michelle Ashford (“Masters of Sex,” “The Pacific,” “John Adams”) are both on as writers and executive producers of the series, Spaulding, who has an overall deal with AMC Studios, would serve as showrunner if the series was greenlit. The series will focus on an intuitive young neurosurgeon who discovers that she is the unlikely heir to a family of witches. As she grapples with her newfound powers, she must contend with a sinister presence that has haunted her family for generations.

“We have an enormous amount of ambition for these iconic works, which have captivated and entertained millions of fans around the world, so it is gratifying to be moving so quickly from the ‘Interview’ greenlight to exploring a second series with such talented and accomplished writers and creators as Esta and Michelle,” said Dan McDermott, president of original programming for AMC Networks and AMC Studios. “We take our responsibility to deliver compelling television to both existing and new fans of this material incredibly seriously, as we move deliberately to develop these titles into a new franchise and universe for AMC+ and AMC.”