Mad Men’s Kiernan Shipka Cast as Sabrina the Teenage Witch for Netflix

Kiernan Shipka (Mad Men) has been cast as Sabrina Spellman in the as-yet-untitled Sabrina Project for Netflix. We posted recently how Netflix had ordered 20 x 1 hr episodes (probably spread over 2 seasons) of the show which is based on the Archie Comics graphic novel The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. The hit series “Riverdale”, which is a Netflix Original in most of the world, is also based on the same series of comics although a crossover is unlikely initially.

Sabrina’s character is described as “an empowered young woman, half-human, half-witch, Sabrina is just beginning her dark education as a sorceress, even as she tries to maintain a normal life as a sophomore at Baxter High. Intelligent, compassionate and brave to the point of recklessness, Sabrina is all that stands between us and the forces of darkness that threaten our world.”

The series, unlike the 90’s Nickelodeon version, is set to be much darker – in the vein of “Rosemary’s Baby” and “The Exorcist”, this adaptation finds Sabrina wrestling to reconcile her dual nature — half-witch, half-mortal — while standing against the evil forces that threaten her, her family and the daylight world humans inhabit.

In the meantime “Riverdale” returns with more episodes of Season 2 from 18th January.