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The CW Orders Holy Grail-Inspired Miniseries, Two New Reality Series

The CW is on the hunt for the Holy Grail. The network has ordered a four-hour miniseries, titled Labyrinth, that follows two women — one in modern-day France and the other in medieval France — who are united in their search for the Grail. An adaptation of Kate Mosse's best-selling novel of the same name, Labyrinth stars Downton Abbey alum Jessica Brown-Findlay as Alaïs, a 17-year-old in the year...

katestanhope-6623.jpg
Kate Stanhope

The CW is on the hunt for the Holy Grail.

The network has ordered a four-hour miniseries, titled Labyrinth, that follows two women — one in modern-day France and the other in medieval France — who are united in their search for the Grail.

An adaptation of Kate Mosse's best-selling novel of the same name, Labyrinth stars Downton Abbey alum Jessica Brown-Findlay as Alaïs, a 17-year-old in the year 1209 who is given a special book by her father, which he says contains the secret of the true Grail. Although she cannot understand the book's special labyrinth symbols, she is guarded with protecting its secret. Eight centuries later, a volunteer named Alice (The Hour's Vanessa Kirby) discovers two skeletons in a forgotten cave featuring a labyrinth symbol carved into the rock that piques her curiosity.

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The project also stars John Hurt, Once Upon a Time's Sebastian Stan and Harry Potter alum Tom Felton, among others. The miniseries will be directed by Christopher Smith (Black Death) from a script written by Adrian Hodges (My Week with Marilyn).

During The CW's session at the Television Critics Association winter TV previews on Wednesday, the network also announced that it has ordered two new reality series. Barber Battle, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, will see barbers from all over the country compete to not only cut the best hair, but also to re-create things like landmarks and portraits on people's heads. The first season will consist of 10 episodes.

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Penn & Teller: Fool Us, hosted by British TV personality Jonathan Ross, invites aspiring magicians to perform their best trick to try to fool the famous duo. Anyone who succeeds in doing so gets to perform with Penn & Teller in their show at the Rio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Penn & Teller only see the trick once and must immediately try to work it out. Season 1 will run for nine episodes.

Barber Battle and Penn & Teller: Fool Us will premiere later this year. There is no premiere date yet for Labyrinth. Which new projects are you most excited for?

(Full disclosure: TVGuide.com is owned by CBS, one of The CW's parent companies.)