Great American Media is doubling down on the small-town, second-chance stories that built its network, announcing a new original drama called ABILENE, set to premiere in early 2027.
“ABILENE is reflective of the kind of story we tell at Great American Media,” said Bill Abbott, President and CEO of Great American Media. “It is beautifully made, emotionally resonant, and grounded in values that matter.”
The company unveiled ABILENE on July 23 out of New York, confirming the series will make its world premiere on Great American Pure Flix before moving to Great American Family and GFAM+ in early 2027. Rose Reid (CHRISTMAS ON EVERY PAGE, A THOUSAND TOMORROWS) stars in the title role as Abby Morgan, whose legal name is Abilene.
Abby is a young woman looking to start over who winds up stranded in Fair Haven, Ohio, a “quiet, weathered” town she only meant to pass through. A job offer and a place to stay at a family-owned cider mill turn the stopover into something more permanent, and Abby’s own talent and past start catching up with her.
Elizabeth Mitchell (THE SANTA CLAUSES, LOST) plays Hannah, and Eric Close (NASHVILLE) plays Ben, the couple at the center of the Wagner family taking Abby in. Jordan Belfi (ALL AMERICAN), Andrew Ferguson (FAITH & FORGIVENESS: A DUCK DYNASTY LOVE STORY), Michael Pavone (THE MYSTERY OF HER) and Johnathon Schaech (BLUE RIDGE) round out the ensemble around them.
Kevin Quinn (BUNK’D, A WEEK AWAY), Taylor Kalupa (BLUE RIDGE) and singer-songwriter Riley Clemmons also join the cast, with an original soundtrack built around Abby’s musical background.
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“ABILENE was born out of a love for the people and places that make small-town America so special,” said series creator Nicholas DiBella, who also serves as showrunner, director and writer. “It’s a world filled with music, orchards, front porches, family traditions, and the belief that hope can still change a life.”
DiBella called the partnership with Great American Media a natural fit.
“We feel incredibly blessed to have found a partner in Great American Media, whose appreciation for uplifting storytelling aligns so beautifully with the spirit of ABILENE,” he said. The show is a production of Faith Street Films in association with Toy Gun Films, with DiBella executive-producing alongside co-showrunner Brent Ryan Green, Jim Pavone, Chris Bueno and Sheila Hart, per TVLine, which broke the casting news alongside the official announcement.
The show’s central question — can a person ever really outrun their past, or does grace eventually find them — lines up with the redemption arcs Movieguide® has praised in Great American’s other projects. The network’s A THOUSAND TOMORROWS, the Karen Kingsbury adaptation that also starred Reid, carried what Movieguide®’s review called “a strong Christian, moral worldview,” built on forgiveness, sacrificial love and hope.
Reid told Movieguide® at the time that Kingsbury’s story reflects “a story of faith and a story of leaning into that even though it seems like all hope is lost,” adding, “even if you think you are beyond healing, the Lord can still heal you,” she said.
Quinn has been similarly open with Movieguide® about his own faith journey since A WEEK AWAY. “God really did bring this project at the perfect time, and it was a complete reintroduction to my own faith,” he told Movieguide®’s Evy Carroll.
Abbott, who left Hallmark to launch Great American Media in 2021, has told Movieguide® that his goal was to build a network families “can watch… together” at a time when, in his words, “the vast majority, if not all, of the entertainment outlets in the business are edgy and salacious,” he said. ABILENE, with its orchard-town setting and forgiveness-minded plot, fits squarely inside that mission.
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