Holy Grail Miniseries Aim To Latch On To Success Of ‘The Bible’

A Holy Grail miniseries that was a huge hit in Britain is now making the trek overseas after being picked up by The CW.

The four-hour project, Labyrinth, follows a 13th century teenager and a modern woman both searching for the Holy Grail, the cup said to be used by Jesus Christ at the last supper. The miniseries stars former Downton Abbey actress Jessica Brown-Findlay, along with Vanessa Kirby, Sebastian Stan, and John Hurt.

Adapted from the best-selling novel by Kate Mosse, the Holy Grail miniseries was a hit when it aired in Britain, and has also aired in a number of other countries.

The Holy Grail miniseries looks to follow in the success of other biblical-based television programs. Last year’s miniseries The Bible, a 10-hour series put together by Survivor producer Mark Burnett, delivered huge ratings to the History Channel.

The first episode of the miniseries was seen by 13.1 million viewers, the largest cable television audience of 2013. Though the second and third installments sunk a bit, averaging close to 11 million viewers, the series ended up with strong showings in the important 25-54 demographic and more than 100 million cumulative views.

Labyrinth combines historical fiction with some true events, telling the story of a woman named Alice (Kirby) who discovers two skeletons in a forgotten cave along with a mysterious labyrinth symbol carved into the cave. The symbol takers her back to Alais (Findlay), a 17-year-old who in 1209 was given a book by her father said to contain the secret of the true Holy Grail.

The Holy Grail miniseries isn’t the only new addition for The CW, which also announced Barber Battle, a competition series hosted by Cedric The Entertainer, and Penn & Teller: Fool Us, where aspiring magicians try to wow the duo.