‘Bewitched’ And ‘The Partridge Family’ Animated Reboots In The Works

If you are a fan of classic television, you are certainly familiar with the fantasy sitcom Bewitched, which aired for eight seasons (from 1964 to 1972) and was ABC’s first top 10 hit. Bewitched featured Elizabeth Montgomery as a witch named Samantha who marries an ordinary mortal man named Darrin (Dick York initially) and vows to lead the life of a typical suburban housewife.

Sony Pictures Television has announced plans to reboot Bewitched as an animated series that would focus on Tabitha Stevens, the thirteen-year-old daughter of Darrin and Samantha. The premise is described as “Hannah Montana meets Harry Potter.”

Of course, this won’t be the first reboot or spin-off series from Bewitched. Lisa Hartman headlined the comedy Tabitha in the 1977-78 TV season, which followed Samantha and Darrin’s daughter working as a production assistant at a television station and living in Los Angeles. Robert Urich co-starred. Then, in 2005, Bewitched inspired a film starring Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell.

There was also a Bewitched comic book series, a comic strip titled Lady Penelope, a variety of merchandising, and other planned revivals.

Sony Pictures Television, meanwhile, has also announced plans for an animated reboot of sitcom The Partridge Family, which would focus on a musical Black family from Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood that operates a food truck as they travel throughout New York’s five boroughs to serve up treats and tunes.

The original Partridge Family, which aired from 1970 to 1974, followed suburban widow Shirley (Shirley Jones) and her kids (including David Cassidy) as they toured the country in a wildly painted bus performing music as a family. Airing out of The Brady Bunch, it was an immediate hit and a pioneer in the early ABC “TGIF” comedy brand.

An animated spin-off, Partridge Family 2200 A.D., aired in the 1974-75 season after the series concluded. There was also a comic book series based on The Partridge Family, merchandising (including a board game and books), and a reunion special. In 2004, VH1 produced a pilot for a syndicated The New Partridge Family, which did not move forward.