A revival of Ghost Hunters is officially coming to A&E, along with four other unscripted paranormal series.
A&E announced its new Ghost Hunters revival on Wednesday, picking the show up after three years off the air. Ghost Hunters ran on Syfy for 12 years, from 2004 to 2016 before it was finally canceled. It won’t miss a beat when it returns, with ghost expert Grant Wilson leading an all-new team of investigators into haunted places around the country.
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Fans will not have to wait long for the reboot, either. After announcing the series this week, A&E will air the first episode on Wednesday, Aug. 21. The fast turn-around will ensure audiences are engaged, and shorten the gap between Ghost Hunters‘ cancellation and revival, making it as if the show never left for some.
As before, Ghost Hunters promises to investigate alleged hauntings all over the U.S., with the aid of “forensic experts, historical records and the most innovative technology available.”
“The new squad will help everyday people who are struggling with unexplained supernatural phenomena,” says the logline, and “give relief to those plagued by paranormal activity.”
While Syfy may have seemed a more apt home for Ghost Hunters to some, A&E argues that it is really the dominant network when it comes to the paranormal. A statement by the network — published by TV Line — notes that the genre is due for resurgence, and A&E wants to make it happen.
“A&E has been on the forefront of programming in the paranormal space and with that success, we have been eager to bring the genre back to the network for some time,” said executive vice president and head of programming Elaine Frontain Bryant. “Each of these series has a unique point of view, but will collectively give our audience a window into a world of spellbinding stories that have to be seen to be believed.”
Ghost Hunters is just one window A&E hopes to open. It will air alongside a revival of Psychic Kids, a beloved series that first aired from 2008 to 2010. The show followed young people who displayed a clairvoyant gift, and the new version will catch back up with them. The original cast of the show is now grown up, and they are using their skills to raise up the next generation of psychics, according to the network.
Meanwhile, a brand new series joins the reboots, titled Trey the Texas Medium. The show’s title personality, Trey Ganem, is a custom casket maker as well as a medium, which has some crossover bound to fuel the show. There is also Celebrity Ghost Stories, hosted by psychic and medium Kim Russo, which promises to bring “some of the biggest names in entertainment back to the sites of their paranormal experiences.”
Finally, the network has also ordered a two-hour special called World’s Biggest Ghost Hunt, which puts five paranormal investigators together for “the longest continuously filmed paranormal investigation in television history.” It will be set in the Pennhurst Alylum in Pennsylvania, a famously eerie locale.
The Ghost Hunters revival premieres on Wednesday, Aug. 21 at 9 p.m. ET on A&E.
