Photo by Disney

Disney's "Beauty and the Beast"

Every pilot season, there's always a few similar-sounding projects that get set up at different networks, and this year is no different.

Last week we wrote about the CW's "Beauty and the Beast" pilot, a reboot of the '80s Ron Perlman-Linda Hamilton TV series, which is being cast by Sherman/Knight. But the CW isn't the only network in the beauty/beast business, as ABC also gave an order to a project of that name. Details on the exact nature of ABC's version are scarce, but it seems to be in the "modern re-imagining" vein. There's a beauty, there's a beast, but it's fresh and new! Anyhow, ABC's "Beauty and the Beast" (both projects still have the same title, which will most likely not be the case in the event both pilots get series orders) is being cast by Deb Aquila at Aquila/Wood. No word on a start date for this project yet.