The River

ABC is bringing a little bit of the horror genre to primetime with new series The River, which premieres tonight. In the show, created by Paranormal Activity's Oren Peli, a team of people goes on a rescue mission on the Amazon, but they find a lot more than they bargained for while on their expedition. It could be the next good TV mystery to get sucked into, so if you're interested, check out my thoughts on the pilot below.

• What it's about: A famous TV adventure series host, Dr. Emmet Cole (Bruce Greenwood), goes missing and is presumed dead while he's exploring the Amazon. His estranged wife and grown son refuse to give up, so they go to the site of his last trip, the creepy, jungle-lined Amazon, to see if they can find him. A documentary crew comes with them, and together they discover terrifying supernatural events aboard the boat.
• Where it works: There are genuine scares in the pilot, especially because the mystery seems to be rooted in chilling cultural folklore. And if you crave jump scares weekly, this may be the show for you.
• Where it doesn't: None of the main characters is particularly compelling, even though they each hint at enigmatic backstories for themselves. Also, the signature found-footage camera work may turn into a headache for some viewers.
• When it's on: Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on ABC, starting Feb. 7
• You might like this show if: You really miss Lost and love the Paranormal Activity movies.

To watch a preview and see some photos from The River, just keep reading

One of ABC's midseason shows is exploring a genre that's not currently that common in primetime: horror. The River is a drama set on the Amazon, and Paranormal Activity's Oren Peli is serving as an executive producer. The new series uses the same kind of found-footage style of those films and follows a group of people trying to find a man who disappeared on the river (the horror aspect comes in when the team finds a terrifying supernatural being). The cast and showrunners stopped by Winter TCA to talk about how scary The River will be and why you'd want to tune in if you're not a horror fan.

• Peli, who directed and wrote Paranormal Activity, was asked to create a TV show after the success of the horror franchise, but he admitted that he had "no idea about TV" and wasn't sure what kind of show he wanted to make. When he had a chat with a writer from Paranormal Activity 2, they talked about making a movie about lost people on the Amazon, which inspired Peli to wonder why it couldn't be a TV show with an adventure every week, and The River was born.
• In terms of other mystery series, executive producer Michael Green said he looked more to The X-Files as an inspiration rather than Lost. He says The River will have standalone episodes, where each episode is "its own horror film," with "longer-term horizontal arcs." For us scaredy-cats, producers tried to let us know how scary the show will be. Green said that the network told him, "You can go as scary as you want, as long as we care about the people." They believe that the characters, which include a family, will get people to keep tuning in.
• The found-footage style that's in the Paranormal Activity films is used in The River, which Green says "makes it feel more improvisational, a lot scarier, and more real." Fellow producer Zack Estrin says that they "think of the camera as a character," but despite that, Green doesn't want people to get caught up in that. "The show is not about the style, it's about the people," Green said.

Upfronts madness has officially set in, and the networks have been going crazy making their announcements about which shows are getting the ax and which pilots are a go for next season. ABC has pulled the plug on Brothers & Sisters and a few more, but what's coming next Fall? I've got the scoop on the new crop, which includes plenty of familiar faces like Kristin Chenoweth, Tim Allen, and more, so start getting to know ABC's new lineup now!

COMEDY

• Suburgatory: A family sitcom set in — wait for it — the suburbs. A father (Dodgeball's Alan Tudyk) uproots his daughter from Manhattan for a more provincial life in the 'burbs.
• Work It: Follows two guys who dress up like women for better jobs after they're laid off.
• Man Up: Focuses on a group of guys coming to terms with being middle-aged men.
• Apt. 23: Krysten Ritter plays an NYC party girl who clashes with her new good-girl roommate from the Midwest. James Van Der Beek also stars as himself.
• Last Man Standing: Tim Allen returns to TV as a man struggling to hang on to his traditional values in today's world. Nancy Travis will costar as his wife.

To check out the new dramas, just read more