ABC Family Gets Switched At Birth

Vanessa Marano on Switched at Birth.
(Image credit: Freeform)

While in reality, two babies being switched at birth sounds like a complete nightmare, you have to admit, the subject does make for an interesting drama premise and apparently, ABC Family agrees. (No, it's not a reality show.)

ABC Family announced the series pick-up for Switched At Birth this week. This scripted drama series’ premise is as you might guess. Two baby girls are switched at birth and raised in very different environments. Their lives collide again when they’re old and their families attempt to deal with the situation. It sounds intriguing. Vanessa Marano (Dexter, The Comeback) plays one of the switched girls, while newcomer Katie Leclerc plays the other.

Below is ABC Family's description for the series:

Switched at Birth, a one-hour scripted drama, tells the story of two teenage girls who discover they were accidentally switched as newborns in the hospital. Bay Kennish grew up in a wealthy family with two parents and a brother, while Daphne Vasquez, who lost her hearing at an early age due to a case of meningitis, grew up with a single mother in a poor neighborhood. Things come to a dramatic head when both families meet and struggle to learn how to live together for the sake of the girls. Lizzy Weiss (Blue Crush, Cashmere Mafia), Paul Stupin (Make It or Break It) and John Ziffren (Melissa & Joey, Make It or Break It) serve as executive producers.Switched at Birth stars newcomer Katie Leclerc as Daphne Vasquez; Vanessa Marano (Gilmore Girls) as Bay Kennish; Constance Marie (George Lopez) as Regina Vasquez; D.W. Moffett (Friday Night Lights) as John Kennish; Lea Thompson (Back to the Future, Caroline in the City) as Kathryn Kennish; and Lucas Grabeel (High School Muisical) as Toby Kennish.

Switched at Birth is set to premiere on ABC Family sometime later this year.