Ellen Pompeo stars in new Hulu series "Chicks

Ellen Pompeo is back in development with Hulu, and this time the project sounds very different from anything she has tackled before. Just a few days after the news broke on June 4, 2026, the actress best known for her 19 seasons on Grey's Anatomy is officially attached to star in a brand new pilot called "Chicks", once again partnering with 20th Television.

A Boston family dramedy with a criminal twist

"Chicks" is described as a family dramedy rooted in the rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods of old Boston. The premise follows two estranged half-sisters, Chickie and Doreen, who reconnect under the worst possible circumstances : their father, a small-time wise guy, suddenly dies and leaves them nothing but a shady criminal legacy.

Rather than walk away from that inheritance, the two women decide to lean into it. Their schemes grow bolder as the series progresses, and so does their bond. The show uses the classic odd-couple dynamic to explore how two people with almost nothing in common can slowly fill the emotional void left by an absent parent.

Here is a quick breakdown of what we know about the project so far :

• Title : Chicks
• Platform : Hulu (with likely Disney+ availability internationally)
• Genre : Family dramedy with crime elements
• Lead character : Chickie, played by Ellen Pompeo
• Creator : Katie Robbins
• Stage : Pilot in development
• Release date : Not yet confirmed

No casting announcements beyond Pompeo have been made yet for the role of Doreen or any supporting characters. Given that this is still at the pilot stage, a lot can change before a full series order is confirmed.

Ellen Pompeo and Katie Robbins : a creative duo already in motion

The partnership between Ellen Pompeo and writer-producer Katie Robbins did not come out of nowhere. The two women developed the concept for "Chicks" while working together on the set of Good American Family, the Hulu limited series that aired in 2025 and told the real-life story of the Natalia Grace case. That collaboration clearly sparked something, because they moved fast to develop a follow-up project.

Robbins, who served as a key creative force on Good American Family, will both write and executive produce "Chicks". Pompeo will executive produce alongside Laura Holstein through her production banner, Calamity Jane, giving her significant creative control over the direction of the show. This is not a situation where she is simply hired to perform; she is shaping the project from the ground up.

Her relationship with 20th Television also continues here, the same studio that backed both previous projects. That kind of ongoing institutional trust tends to accelerate development cycles, though it never guarantees a series order.

What Hulu's development pipeline tells us about "Chicks"

Landing a pilot order on Hulu is genuinely competitive. The streamer has been increasingly selective about what it develops into full series, and Pompeo's track record gives "Chicks" a real advantage in that process. Good American Family drew strong enough attention to cement her position as a reliable draw for the platform.

That said, pilot orders are not guarantees. Hulu has a history of developing projects that never make it past that stage. We have covered Hulu canceling the Foster Dade YA series development as a recent example of how quickly things can shift at the streamer. No confirmed premiere date for "Chicks" exists yet, and no international rollout details for Disney+ have been shared either.

From where we sit, tracking what lands on which platform and when, this one is worth watching closely. The combination of a crime-infused dramedy, a Boston setting, and a creator-performer duo who already have chemistry is a genuinely promising setup.

Why the Boston setting and the crime angle could be the show's real asset

Boston as a backdrop carries a specific cultural weight in American television and film. The city's working-class identity, its tight neighborhood dynamics, and its long history of local crime stories give "Chicks" a built-in sense of texture that many dramedies lack from the start. Think about how much the setting shaped the tone of shows like The Town or earlier crime narratives rooted in the same geography.

What makes the pitch for "Chicks" genuinely interesting is the shift in perspective. Two women inheriting a criminal legacy, not as victims or love interests but as active architects of their own schemes, flips a familiar genre template in a direction that feels current without being forced. The emotional core, two estranged sisters slowly rebuilding a relationship, gives the show stakes beyond the heist-of-the-week format.

If Hulu commits to a full order, the streamer would likely position "Chicks" as a flagship comedy-drama in its original programming lineup, given Pompeo's profile. Keep an eye on any casting news for the role of Doreen : whoever lands that part will define whether the odd-couple chemistry actually works on screen. That second piece of casting, more than anything else, will tell us how serious Hulu is about pushing this one forward.