HBO Max Orders Dead Boy Detectives

Dead Boy Detectives, based on DC’s The Sandman and Dead Boy Detectives comics, has been given a straight-to-series order by HBO Max.

The original drama provides a fresh take on a ghost story, exploring loss, grief and death through the lens of two dead teenagers and their living friend. Steve Yockey (The Flight Attendant, Supernatural, Doom Patrol) wrote the pilot and serves as showrunner.

George Rextrew and Jayden Revri (The Lodge) star as the dead boy detectives, while Kassius Nelson (Last Night in Soho, Hollyoaks) stars as their living friend. Additional cast members are Briana Cuoco (The Flight Attendant, Harley Quinn), Ruth Connell (Supernatural), Yuyu Kitamura (The Expatriates) and Jenn Lyon (Claws, Justified).

Dead Boy Detectives is produced by Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. The series characters are based on characters created for DC by Neil Gaiman and Matt Wagner.

Executive producers are Yockey, Jeremy Carver (Doom Patrol, Supernatural), Greg Berlanti (YOU, The Flash) and Sarah Schechter (The Flight Attendant, You). Lee Toland Kriger (Superman & Lois, upcoming Green Lantern) directed the pilot episode and also served as an executive producer on the pilot alongside David Madden (Superman & Lois).

“We are excited to be expanding further into the DC Universe with Steve, Jeremy and the Berlanti team with this thrilling new spin on a detective series,” said Sarah Aubrey, head of original content at HBO Max. “We were fascinated by the world of the Dead Boy Detectives that Steve and Jeremy first introduced in Doom Patrol and cannot wait to follow the supernatural sleuths in the lurid mysteries to come.”

Yockey said, “I’ve been obsessed with this comic for a long time, so it’s a true passion project. And Jeremy, Berlanti Productions, DC, WBTV, HBO Max—they’re all encouraging me to run with every wild, bizarre and unsettling choice. The result is going to be really dark fun.”