Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement’s 2014 mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows is a perfect movie. It’s one of our favorites from the last decade. It also led to one of our favorite comedies on television right now, the FX series with the same title. But that’s not the film’s only spinoff. The movie’s New Zealand police officers have been starring in their own series, Wellington Paranormal, since 2018. It’s currently airing its third season in New Zealand. You might not know about it, because outside of some tantalizing promos, it’s never aired in the United States. But that’s finally about to change as Wellington Paranormal is making its American debut on The CW and HBO Max this summer.
Our long international nightmare is over. The CW and HBO Max will each be airing Wellington Paranormal in the US under a joint agreement. (Which we first heard about at The Hollywood Reporter.) WarnerMedia, which co-owns The CW with ViacomCBS, will debut episodes on HBO Max the day after they are broadcast on The CW.
We first told you about the series in 2018. It follows officers Minogue (Mike Minogue) and O’Leary (Karen O’Leary), first introduced in What We Do in the Shadows. They investigate the strangest cases in Wellington, which means dealing with vampires, werewolves, ghosts, demons, and people who can crawl up walls. And like the franchise’s two other installments, that provides plenty of fodder for comedy.
TVNZ
Since the show premiered, Jemaine Clement has assured anxious fans the series would eventually be available in the US. This day is a long time coming, but will seemingly be worth the wait. The What We Do in the Shadows universe has only produced comedic gold. And Reviews have always been stellar for the mockumentary series. It boasts a perfect 100% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Wellington Paranormal is set to launch on July 11 on The CW.
Originally published on March 24, 2021.