Zahir McGhee’s Hip Hop Drama ‘Queens’ & ‘Once Upon a Time’ Trio’s Fairytale Drama ‘Epic’ Get ABC Pilot Orders

Queens, a drama about a 90s hip hop group from Zahir McGhee, and Epic, from the team behind Once Upon A Time, are the latest projects to be handed pilot orders by ABC.

It marks the latest pilot orders for the Disney-owned network, which handed Sam Esmail’s procedural Acts of Crime a pilot order earlier this month.

Both shows come from ABC Signature.

Queens follows four women, estranged and out-of-touch, in their 40s reunite for a chance to recapture their fame and regain the swagger they had as the Nasty Bitches – their ’90s group that made them legends in the hip-hop world.

It is written and exec produced by Scandal and Private Practice alum McGhee, who recently created Delroy Lindo project Harlem’s Kitchen that did not move forward. Sabrina Wind, who exec produced the Disney+ series Muppets Now, exec produces via her Windpower Entertainment. McGhee is repped by Verve and attorney Matt Johnson (Ziffren Brittenham).

Meanwhile, Epic is a romantic anthology series that reinvents fairy tales for a new audience.

It comes from former Once Upon a Time writer Brigitte Hales and series’ creators/executive producers/showrunners Eddy Kitsis & Adam Horowitz.

It is set in the fairytale universe of Disney and will center on a whole new set of new heroes, villains, princes, princesses and all manner of magical beings.

It is similar to Once Upon a Time, which mixed classic Disney fairytale creations with new creations and ran for seven seasons. Hales writes and exec produces, while Horowitz and Kitsis exec produce.

Epic and Queens are set to be two of a handful of drama pilots. Kevin Costner’s drama National Park Service is still pending, although is expected to receive a pilot order soon, while no official word on Sam Esmail’s other project, an untitled CDC drama, that received a put pilot commitment in September.