Heroes: Origins is an upcoming American science fiction drama, a spinoff of NBC's hit show Heroes. Heroes: Origins will introduce one new character per episode, and viewers will choose which character will join the main cast at the end of the run. The second season of Heroes and the first season of Heroes: Origins will include a total of 30 episodes.[1][2]
The reason given for the spin-off was to remove the mid-season hiatus, which caused the ratings to falter when Heroes returned in Season 1.[2] “We've got something I call the ‘bulk-up challenge’ for next year, which is trying to stay more consistent in our scheduling for the audience,” NBC chief Kevin Reilly told reporters Monday (5/14) at a press conference announcing the network's 2007-08 schedule. "We asked ['Heroes' creator] Tim Kring to come up with an idea, and what I love is not only did we bulk up with 30 hours next season, but also a whole new idea which I think is going to take the show to the next level.“ While not all scheduling details have been hashed out, Reilly says, ”I'll tell you one thing you won't see is ‘Origins’ peppered throughout, I think that would be difficult for the audience to navigate."