Reaper

The pilot script was written by creators and executive producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters and received a script commitment from The CW in September 2006.

Writer/director Kevin Smith agreed to direct the first hour of the series in February 2007, and the CW gave the show an early pick-up with a 13-episode order on May 15, 2007.

The Writers Guild of America strike of 2007-2008 forced production to halt after the tenth episode of season one, with the show resuming pre-strike episodes on Thursdays in March before airing post-strike episodes starting April 22, 2008.

Nikki Reed, actress and co-writer of Thirteen, was originally cast in March 2007 as Sam's love interest Andi but was replaced by Missy Peregrym in June 2007, fresh off a recurring role on Heroes.

Anthony Head and James Marsters both auditioned for the role of the Devil before Ray Wise was cast in mid-March 2007.

Kyle Switzer was cast as Sam's younger brother, originally named Keith before the character's name was changed to Kyle; the character was written out of the show after only two episodes.

The pilot first screened publicly at San Diego Comic-Con on July 27, 2007, receiving mostly positive responses before its official premiere on The CW in September.

After cancellation, both lead actors Bret Harrison and Tyler Labine declined to return for a potential third season even when a syndication deal was being considered, and in February 2018 the pair reprised their Reaper roles in an episode of Kevin (Probably) Saves the World.