Bates Motel is an American horror/thriller mystery drama television series developed for television by Carlton Cuse, Kerry Ehrin and Anthony Cipriano as a contemporary prequel to the 1960 film Psycho (based on Robert Bloch's novel of the same name), which depicts the life of Norman Bates and his mother Norma prior to the events portrayed in Hitchcock's film, albeit in a different fictional town and in a modern, 21st-century setting.
The series begins after the death of Norma's husband, when she purchases a motel located in a coastal Oregon town so she and Norman can start a new life. Fans will have access to the dark, twisted backstory of Norman Bates and how deeply intricate his relationship with his mother, Norma, truly is.
The series stars Academy Award nominee Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air, The Departed), Freddie Highmore (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Finding Neverland), Max Thieriot (Disconnect), Olivia Cooke (Blackout) and Nicola Peltz (The Last Airbender).
Season one also co-stars Nestor Carbonell (Lost, The Dark Knight Rises) and Mike Vogel (Pan Am).
In Bates Motel, following the tragic death of her husband, Norma Bates buys a motel on the outskirts of the idyllic coastal town of White Pine Bay, seeking a fresh start.
As Norma and Norman get ensconced in their new home, they discover this town isn't quite what it seems, and the locals aren't so quick to let them in on their secrets.
But the Bates' are done being pushed around and will do whatever it takes to survive - and will do whatever it takes to protect their own secrets.
Bates Motel is produced by Universal Television for A&E Network. Carlton Cuse and Kerry Ehrin serve as executive producers for Carlton Cuse Productions.