20 years after the original Charmed premiered, The CW has resurrected the show (using an ouija board, I assume) with a reboot. Because the setting of the original Charmed was so important to the show, fans might want to know: Where is the Charmed reboot set? In the 2018 version of Charmed, the new Charmed Ones live pretty far from the show's original setting. Sisters Macy, Mel, and Maggie (played by Madeleine Mantock, Melonie Diaz, and Sarah Jeffery, respectively) live together in a college town called Hilltowne, Michigan. Never heard of it? Well, that's because it's not real — the show's creators entirely made up the town, à la Stars Hollow, Connecticut or Pawnee, Indiana.
This is a pretty big shift from the original Charmed, which took place in the real city of San Francisco, California. Not to mention, the series started out with Phoebe returning to the family's San Francisco home from New York City (which, I don't think I need to tell you, is also a real place).
In the beginning of the new Charmed, which premiered on The CW earlier this month, Mel and Maggie live with their mother, Marisol. (Try saying that three times fast.) A few months after Marisol is killed, a young woman named Macy shows up at Mel and Maggie's doorstep in Hilltowne, after moving there for a job at the fictional Hilltowne University, where Mel and Maggie both study. Macy tells Mel and Maggie that she thinks she is their half-sister. Once the three sisters are together, they discover their witchy powers — Maggie can hear people’s thoughts if she touches them, Macy is telekinetic, and Mel can freeze time, according to Newsweek.
Additionally, Express adds, a lot of Charmed will take place in the three sisters' house, and many other scenes will be set in other locations in Hilltowne and at Hilltowne University. San Francisco provided a classic backdrop for the original Charmed, but I have a feeling a college town like Hilltowne will have plenty to offer in terms of spookiness. There's not much scarier than an 8 a.m. lecture, am I right?
On top of the new setting, the Charmed reboot features a few other differences from the original. Most notably, the new Charmed Ones are all of Latinx descent — and people are cheering for the inclusivity.
In a recent interview with The Oprah Magazine, the reboot's three stars opened up about the importance of putting diverse characters on screen. “I just feel like the world looks really different right now and we’re the majority. We’re no longer the minority and entertainment and television should reflect that," Diaz, who plays Mel, told the magazine. "It’s no surprise that movies like Black Panther and Crazy Rich Asians do so well. It’s because we are buying tickets and we want to see people that look like us."
The next episode of Charmed will air on The CW on Sunday at 9 p.m. ET. Anyone else already feeling spooked?
