You Ask, We Deliver: The Basics of ABC’s THE RIVER

I’ve been getting a lot of questions about ABC‘s new show The River, which premieres on February 7. If you’ve watched anything on ABC lately, you’ve probably seen the TV spot. Thirty seconds, however, is not really enough to get much more than “okay it’s probably not the Mississippi River, it has that Paranormal Activity look, and yikes there’s something creepy.”

SciFi Mafia is here to help. We haven’t seen it yet, but we have seen a lot of clips. Here’s a nice long one for you:

And here’s the latest press release:

Monday, January 23, 2012
ABC Television Network
PRESS RELEASE – PRESS RELEASE – ENTERTAINMENT –
THE RIVER: Pilot / Marbeley– PREMIERE

PREMIERE

THE CREW OF THE MAGUS EMBARKS ON ITS RESCUE MISSION TO FIND
DR. EMMET COLE, ON THE SERIES PREMIERE OF “THE RIVER,”
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7 ON ABC

ABC’S highly anticipated new paranormal thriller, The River, will have a two-hour premiere TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.

In the first hour, “Pilot,” Dr. Emmet Cole, beloved adventurer and television personality goes missing deep in the Amazon. After a fruitless search for him, his family and friends abandon hope and hold a memorial service to commemorate his amazing life. His grieving wife, Tess, reluctantly tries to face the reality that her husband is gone, while her son, Lincoln, is more than ready to bury his past. Six months later Emmet’s location beacon mysteriously begins to relay a signal. Tess persuades Lincoln to join her and Emmet’s film crew on a journey through the Amazon to find him, a journey on which horrifying and almost mythical events will push them to their limits.

In the second hour, “Marbeley,” when the spirit of Dr. Emmet Cole mysteriously enters Jahel, the message is clear… go home! Instead, Tess determines to go into the jungle to find clues to Cole’s whereabouts. While on their mission, they discover a tree draped in children’s dolls that they suspect is there to ward off the “spirit of the abandoned girl” who drowned in the river. Then, when a member of the crew goes missing, the group realize they’ll have to endure a nightmare in order to appease an angry spirit and get their loved one back.

The River stars Bruce Greenwood (Star Trek) as Dr. Emmet Cole, Joe Anderson (The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Parts 1 and 2) as Lincoln Cole, Leslie Hope (24) as Tess Cole, Eloise Mumford (Lone Star) as Lena Landry, Paul Blackthorne (Lipstick Jungle) as Clark Quietly, Thomas Kretschmann (King Kong) as Captain Kurt Brynildson, Daniel Zacapa (Resurrection Blvd) as Emilio Valenzuela, Shaun Parkes (The Mummy Returns) as Andreus Jude “A.J.” Poulain, and Paulina Gait‡n (Sin Nombre) as Jahel Valenzuela.

Guest starring in “Pilot” is Jeff Galfer as Sammy Kirsch. “Pilot” teleplay by Michael Green & Michael R. Perry and story by Oren Peli and Michael R. Perry. Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra.

Guest starring in “Marbeley” is Corben Turner as Lincoln (8 years old). “Marbeley” was written by Michael Green & Zack Estrin and directed by Jaume Collet-Serra.

“The River” is executive-produced by Oren Peli, Jason Blum, Steven Schneider, Justin Falvey, Daryl Frank, Zack Estrin, Michael Green and Steven Spielberg. The series is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC’s selected HDTV format, with 5.1-channel surround sound. This program carries a TV-14,L,V parental guideline.