FX Orders The Strain to Series

Look out, FX viewers. The Strain is coming.

The network announced today that it has ordered a 13-episode opening season of this vampire drama, which is based on a series of novels by Chuck Hogan and which will be produced by Hogan, Guillermo del Toro and Carlton Cuse.

“The Strain books are near and dear to my heart and now, Chuck and I have the blessing of a partnership with Carlton and FX that holds great promise,” del Toro said in a statement. “Working with FX has yielded an amazing experience with total creative freedom and support.”

With vampires prevalent on hits such as The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, picking up this drama was a no-brainer for Eric Schrier and Nick Grad, FX Networks and FX Productions presidents of original programming.

“We could not be more excited to be moving forward with Guillermo, Carlton and Chuck on The Strain," the said."This is an epic story with stunning visuals and remarkable acting. The Strain totally reimagines and reinvents the genre.”

Corey Stoll, Mia Maestro, Sean Astin, Kevin Durand, Natalie Brown, Jonathan Hyde, Richard Sammel, Robert Maillet, Jack Kesy, Ben Hyland, and Miguel Gomez will anchor the show's cast and it will premiere in July 2014.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.