Whatever you think of the continuing relevance of the upfronts and/or broadcast television, it’s always interesting to see how networks will frame their wares in order to sell themselves to the highest bidders. In between all the advertising jargon, corporate synergy and lofty promises of blockbuster programming to come, the upfronts presentations can be extremely informative as to what those in charge are betting on in the months to come. This year, it seems safe to say that networks are going all in on…well, a whole lot more of the same.
From NBC’s “Night Court” reboot, to Paramount+ tripling down on Taylor Sheridan’s ever-expanding “Yellowstone” universe, to The CW previewing prequels for both “Supernatural” (“The Winchesters”) and “Walker” (“Walker: Independence”), networks seem keen to revisit what’s already worked in the hopes that it all might work again. Even Adult Swim is set to replicate its wildly popular cartoon “Rick and Morty,” this time in anime form. Of course there are also some original series, but even those have enough similarities to what we’ve seen before that they feel more like variations on a theme than wholly new concepts. (See: CBS’ upcoming procedural dramas, “East New York” and “Fire Country”.)
With that trend in mind, plus the fact that some networks still haven’t made their upfronts previews available to the public (looking at you, NBC), identifying best new trailers was actually easier this year than most. After all: there were only a few that weren’t just reruns.
Here are five of the most intriguing trailers from the 2022 upfronts.
(CLICK HERE to follow Variety’s coverage of Upfronts 2022)