In 2021, The CW developed and filmed a live-action pilot for Powerpuff Girls, featuring Chloe Bennet, Dove Cameron, Yana Perrault, and Donald Faison in the lead roles. However, the series was ultimately canceled and never made it to air—until now.
Recently, footage from the scrapped pilot surfaced on YouTube, reassembled into a makeshift trailer. Sources at The CW confirmed to Variety that the footage is authentic, though a final trailer was never completed before the show was shelved. At the time of its cancellation, The CW may have been working on a trailer for network presentations, but insiders claim the leaked footage would not have met the network’s standards. It is believed the leak might have originated from a rejected third-party trailer or even one created by Warner Bros. TV for events like L.A. screenings or San Diego Comic-Con.
Despite this, the leaked footage quickly spread across social media. It features Bennet as Blossom, Cameron as Bubbles, Perrault as Buttercup, and Faison as Professor Drake Utonium, the scientist who created the trio of superpowered girls in his lab. The trailer portrays their early years as child heroes, their rise to fame through the original Cartoon Network series, and their transition into adulthood. As young adults, Blossom is portrayed as perpetually stressed, Bubbles turns to drinking and throws up in a trash can, while Buttercup is rebellious and defiant.
“I’m not wearing that dress anymore—it’s gender normative and hideous,” Buttercup, played by Perrault, declares. The plot takes a dramatic turn when the sisters accidentally kill an adult human version of Mojo Jojo, leading to drastic changes in their lives. Blossom leaves Townsville, Buttercup becomes a firefighter, Bubbles moves to Hollywood, and Mojo Jojo’s vengeful son, Joseph “Jojo” Mondel Jr. (played by Nicholas Podany), rises to power as the mayor of Townsville. Seven years later, the Powerpuff Girls reunite to face Jojo Jr., who has brainwashed the citizens and framed Professor Utonium for his crimes.
The trailer captures their fight to reclaim Townsville, save their father, and restore their reputations. It even hints at romantic tension between Jojo Jr. and Blossom, which her sisters humorously analyze. “Yes, he was obsessed, and I’m sure he still is—but in an angry, kinky, hate-boner kind of way,” Buttercup jokes, with Bubbles chiming in, “That’s the best kind of boner.”
The live-action adaptation initially gained traction in early 2021, with its high-profile cast and creatives including Oscar-winning writer Diablo Cody, Heather Regnier, Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and David Madden. Produced by Warner Bros. TV, the pilot was retooled and re-shot in May 2021, but momentum stalled when Chloe Bennet departed the project in August.
Reflecting on the pilot’s failure, CW chairman and CEO Mark Pedowitz remarked, “The purpose of pilots is to test ideas, and sometimes they miss. While the cast, writers, and producers are incredibly talented, the initial version didn’t work. Tonally, it felt too campy and lacked grounding in reality. Still, there were promising elements, so we decided to go back to the drawing board. Testing is about learning, and this was a learning opportunity.”
