Swamp Thing star Crystal Reed offered a glimpse at where the show would have gone with her character Abby Arcane, had the series not been cut back to 10 episodes instead of 13. Speaking to CBR, she revealed the series would have explored her family life, particularly regarding her parents.
"That was a hard phone call to receive, because I think we were all kind of flying high and feeling like we were accomplishing something beautiful," Reed said, recalling the moment she learned that three episodes would be cut from Season 1. "But, you know, these things happen often to shows that have been on forever, and it's not uncommon. So we just roll with the punches."
"But what we were going to find out, what we were going to learn more of, if there had been more episodes, is about Abby's mom and her dad," she explained. "For me, that would have been something really cool, and then also there was going to be a lot more going on with a bunch of other characters. So yeah, I think that her family -- it was going to become much more of a character piece, much more of an Abby Arcane show than the first 10 episodes, I suppose."
Swamp Thing debuted on Warner Bros.' DC Universe streaming service in 2019, only to be canceled a few weeks into its first season despite its critical praise. What's more, this news came after the series was suddenly ordered to halt production, cutting the show's original 13 episode order down to 10. Nevertheless, The CW picked up broadcast rights to the series in May with the intention to re-air the show in place of the network's regular programming, which was delayed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Taking place in Marais, Louisiana, Swamp Thing followed Abby as she returned home on assignment from the CDC. There, she encountered a bizarre illness that seemed to emerge from the swamp. After biologist Alec Holland is killed while conducting research, she finds something far more dangerous than a disease: a twisted conspiracy, a dark sentience within the wilderness and an impossible creature made of plant-life that seems to be drawn to her.
Swamp Thing stars Crystal Reed, Andy Bean, Derek Mears, Jennifer Beals, Henderson Wade, Will Patton, Virginia Madsen, Jeryl Prescott and Kevin Durand. The entire series is currently available to stream on the DC Universe service and premieres on The CW on Oct. 6.