29 Jun 2011 03:58:12
Then there was the title character, an American teenager who is descended from — just go with it — an ancient and powerful catlike race that has long been threatened by human assassins, but who is as familiar as the girl next door.
"I heard my own voice, things she said, things she did," Samuels said of Chloe. "I immediately fell in love. I said, 'This is the girl for me,' I walked into the audition and I'm happy to say, everybody agreed."
Executive producer Dan Berendsen ("Sabrina the Teenage Witch," ''Hannah Montana: The Movie"), saw Chloe's appeal when he read author Liz Braswell's three-book series about the young, potential savior of her people.
But it took time to bring the series, debuting 9 p.m. EDT Tuesday, to life.
A TV movie script was well-received by ABC Family four years ago, but the project was shelved when the channel changed its emphasis from films to series. About a year ago, it was rediscovered by an ABC executive who saw potential.
Berendsen took a fresh approach to the script and, in breathtaking speed, the series was born. In a vote of confidence, it is getting a plum spot after ABC Family's popular "Pretty Little Liars," which returns for a new season at 8 p.m. EDT Tuesday.
Besides a choice time slot, "Chloe King" has received abundant promotion that includes bus signs and billboards, including one on a corner Berendsen passes each day driving to work ("It's the smartest thing they could do. I can never call and complain" about lack of support).
With grabber lines such as Chloe's astonished, "I think I died today," ABC Family is hoping for a breakout hit.
While "Chloe King" doesn't take a slavish approach to the source material, the story and characters are recognizable, Berendsen said.
Chloe remains a girl going through "an amazing transformation," he said. She still lives with her single mom (Amy Pietz), is best friends with Amy (Grace Phipps) and Paul (Ki Hong Lee), and is weighing the same two romantic options, Brian and Alek (Grey Damon, Benjamin Stone).
