Ilene Chaiken, creator of Showtime's
groundbreaking drama The L Word, is developing a new
lesbian-themed drama at CBS.
Chaiken's The L Word ran for six
seasons on Showtime and starred Jennifer Beals. A second season of
the show's reality-based spinoff, The Real L Word: Los Angeles,
also helmed by Chaiken, was recently picked up by Showtime.
According to Variety, Chaiken's
new show centers on a lesbian trauma surgeon and her new colleague, a
straight male neurosurgeon.
“Their lives at work – and at home
– become complicated when one starts dating the other's ex-wife,”
Variety wrote.
The hourlong medical drama, titled
Rhodes to Recovery, will be co-executive produced by Chaiken,
Eric Tannenbaum and Kim Tannenbaum.
CBS could use Chaiken's help. The
network received a “failing” grade in the Gay & Lesbian
Alliance Against Defamation's (GLAAD) Network Responsibility Index
(NRI), an annual report on gay-inclusive television.
Last year, Chaiken hinted that the
ladies of The L Word might reunite in a movie based on the
series, which she would write.
Another The L Word spinoff,
however, appears to have been shelved permanently. Executives at
Showtime passed on Chaiken's The Farm, which takes place in a
women's prison.