Cheers Showrunner Ken Estin Steers Paranormal Comedy 'Psychic Predators'

Ken Estin, the two-time Emmy winner who ran the writers' rooms of Taxi and Cheers, is now steering a new comedy about the paranormal. The show is called Psychic Predators, and it stars mentalist Banachek playing himself, according to Variety.

The project was unveiled by Organic Media Group at the Taiwan Creative Content Fest in Taipei, a trade event where film and TV projects are shown to buyers. The fest runs from 6 to 9 November 2026. Psychic Predators is also heading to the American Film Market in Los Angeles, which runs from 10 to 16 November. That market is where producers pitch finished shows and unfinished ideas to buyers from around the world.

The series was created by Steve Chicorel, who is also an executive producer. Estin will run it alongside Chicorel. He signed on after reading Chicorel's pilot, the first-episode script, which is titled The Voice of God. If the show is commissioned, meaning a network or platform orders it to be made, Estin will oversee the writing of the rest of the season.

Banachek's real-life story gives the show its premise. He was mentored by the magician and sceptic James "The Amazing" Randi. At 18, he took part in Project Alpha, a sting, or covert test designed to catch fraud, in paranormal research. Later he helped Randi expose televangelist Peter Popoff, whose supposed messages from God were in fact relayed to him through a hidden earpiece.

Organic Media Group has bases in Los Angeles, Taipei and Brisbane. It was co-founded by Chicorel and Kelly Mi Li, who stars in and executive produces Netflix's Bling Empire.

What happens next depends on buyers. A pilot can be picked up for a full season, passed over, or left waiting while a decision is made. Nothing in the reporting so far says a broadcaster or streamer has ordered Psychic Predators. Until one does, the show's future is open.

For writers and crew, that open question is the real stake. A comedy like this needs a room of writers, a production team and actors before a single episode can be shot. Estin's role would be to shape those scripts into a full season, if the order comes.

For now, the story is simple. A familiar name from two classic sitcoms is attached to a new show about a magician who spent years exposing fakes, and its makers are taking it to market this week.