HBO has renewed the new vampire series True Blood for another season after airing only two episodes. The second episode drew over four million viewers. Moonlight, which had twice as many viewers on CBS and got cancelled a few months ago, may finally get a definite DVD release date in the U.S. (NBC’s Journeyman, mind you, has yet to receive such good news.)
The European DVD release for Moonlight had already been confirmed, but the lack of the announcement for the U.S. region had been a cause of frustration to the fans for some time. Now, TV Guide’s Matt Mitovich reports that Warner Home Video reps told the fans to “stay tuned for good news you can really sink your teeth into in the next month.”
Moonlight, which was originally aired on CBS from September to May, is expected to be released on DVD around New Year’s.
In other vampire news, True Blood, adapted from Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse novels, premiered on September 7 to mostly good reviews and some smirks caused by bad southern accents and sledgehammer gay rights metaphors. Only two episodes into the show, HBO has decided to give it a second season. Season two will go into production early next year in Los Angeles and premiere in the summer.
“We are absolutely thrilled that the critics and our viewers have embraced True Blood. Alan Ball has done it again made an addictive series that is unlike any other,” said Michael Lombardo, president, Programming Group and West Coast Operations.
True Blood creator Alan Ball added: “I am thrilled to be able to continue to work with such a talented group of writers, cast and crew to explore the characters and world created by Charlaine Harris in her novels. It really is a joy to go to work every day and I couldn’t be happier to be back home at HBO.”
For those who have not tuned in yet, here is the official description:
“Mixing romance, suspense, mystery and humor, TRUE BLOOD takes place in the not-too-distant future, when vampires have come out of the coffin, thanks to the invention of mass-produced synthetic blood that means they no longer need humans for their fix. Set in a backwoods Louisiana town, the show follows the romance between waitress Sookie Stackhouse (played by Anna Paquin), who can read minds, and 173-year-old vampire Bill Compton (played by Stephen Moyer). Alan Ball (creator of the Emmy-winning HBO series “Six Feet Under”) created and executive produced the show, as well as wrote and directed episodes of the series, which is based on the popular Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlaine Harris.”
True Blood airs at 8 PM Sunday on HBO.
