Fox Orders Second Josh Berman Pilot

CSI producer Josh Berman will be pulling a double shift this year for Fox, as his second pilot was recently picked by the network.

Berman's new procedural drama, entitled Vanished, will center around the disappearance of Sarah Collins, a senator's wife who may have gone missing as part of a large conspiracy. The mysteries surrounding the investigation will unfold all through the season.

"Each week more secrets will be exposed," Berman told Variety. "We're going to have the thrill ride of an investigation, with a fantastic mystery at the heart of the show: Where is Sarah Collins? Viewers won't know where she is for quite a while."

This is the second pilot Berman has been able to develop for Fox and probably won't be the last. The producer recently scribed a deal with the network that will allow him to develop new series in the span of four years. Berman's first project, Killer Instinct, was picked up by Fox earlier this year and will revolve around a San Francisco unit responsible for hunting down the city's most deviant killers. Berman, however, has not broken all ties with CSI, as his contract bonds him to the show for two more years.

Berman's Vanished sets itself apart from CSI and Killer Instinct by having one continuous story arc instead one-time episodic plots. It's all part of Berman's fascination with big mysteries. "I love writing CSI and pulling back the layers of an onion," he said. "In this case, the onion is a whole season, and it's the size of a watermelon. This will allow me to take what I love about procedural shows and complement it with strong emotional resonance and serialized storytelling."

Killer Instinct will premiere September 23rd at 9 p.m. on Fox. Head over to Daily Variety to learn more about Berman's new pilot.

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