"Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry and Reba McEntire have each had TV success in the past, and now they may find it again by teaming up on a potential new series.

Cherry is working on a new project for ABC starring the country singer, reports Deadline. Still untitled, the series is described as a Southern Gothic soap opera. McEntire would play a local sheriff who joins forces with an FBI agent of Middle Eastern descent to investigate a possible act of terrorism in small-town Kentucky.

The series sounds darker and more melodramatic than the shows McEntire has done before -- namely the comedies "Reba" and "Malibu Country" -- so the project offers an intriguing change. She'll likely benefit from Cherry's experience, given that he has proven to be a pro at soaps. The combination inspired enough interest to get ABC to give it a script commitment plus penalty in what Deadline describes as a "competitive situation."

Cherry is writing the series, and his duties will also include serving as showrunner and executive producer. McEntire is also executive producing, along with Sabrina Wind of Cherry-Wind Productions and Acme Productions' Mindy Schultheis and Michael Hanel.

[via: Deadline]