The Powerpuff Girls Live-Action Series Trailer Leaks, Showing What the Canceled Show Would Have Been

Back in 2023, The CW pulled the plug on a highly anticipated live-action series featuring the grown-up Powerpuff Girls, following a series of reported issues with the project. Recently, a teaser video has emerged online, offering a glimpse into what the show could have been, and it's certainly sparked interest among fans and critics alike.

The teaser, which was briefly available on the YouTube channel "Lost Media Busters" before being taken down by Warner Bros. Entertainment due to copyright issues, runs for three-and-a-half minutes. It sets the stage for the series, where Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup, now young adults, navigate life away from home. Blossom, portrayed by Chloe Bennet, is depicted as stressed and burnt out; Bubbles, played by Dove Cameron, turns to alcohol; and Buttercup, portrayed by Yana Perrault, is shown as rebellious and challenging gender norms.

The trailer follows the trio as they accidentally kill a man named Mojo and subsequently flee Townsville. Years later, they return to visit their father, Professor Utonium, portrayed by Donald Faison. Upon their return, they encounter Mojo's adult son, Jojo, who has become the mayor of Townsville, brainwashed its citizens, and is out for revenge. The trailer includes moments of edgy humor, with references to juggalos and a provocative comment from Buttercup about Jojo's vendetta against Blossom.

The CW has confirmed to Variety that the footage is authentic, though it was never meant to be released to the public.

Originally announced in 2020, the live-action Powerpuff Girls series faced numerous challenges before its cancellation in 2023. A key setback was the initial pilot, which did not meet expectations, leading to Chloe Bennet's departure from the project. CW chairman and CEO Mark Pedowitz explained the decision, stating, "The reason you do pilots is because sometimes things miss, and this was just a miss. We believe in the cast completely. We believe in Diablo [Cody] and Heather [Regnier], the writers. We believe in the auspices of Greg Berlanti and Warner studios. In this case, the pilot didn’t work. But because we see there’s enough elements in there, we wanted to give it another shot. So that’s why we didn’t want to go forward with what we had. Tonally, it might’ve felt a little too campy. It didn’t feel as rooted in reality as it might’ve felt. But again, you learn things when you test things out. And so in this case, we felt, let’s take a step back and go back to the drawing board."