the-bates-motel-signSo… how exactly did Norman become the murderous cross-dressing Hitchcock’ian owner of the Bates Motel?  Pretending that none of the sequels to hit the big, and small, screens ever happened (can we pretty please pretend that?!), the new A&E series “Bates Motel” (Premiering Monday, March 18th) declares that it:

… serves as a contemporary prequel to the genre-defining film, “Psycho,” and promises to give viewers an intimate portrayal of how Norman Bates’ psyche unravels through his teenage years.

Fans will have access to the dark, twisted backstory and learn first hand just how deeply intricate his relationship with his mother, Norma, truly is and how she helped forge the most famous serial killer of them all.

“Bates Motel” is produced by Universal Television for A&E Network. Carlton Cuse (“Lost”) and Kerry Ehrin (“Friday Night Lights”) serve as executive producers for Carlton Cuse Productions.

What do you think?  Sound interesting?  Here’s a pretty sweet look at what we can expect…

[youtube=http://youtu.be/Nkn5aEadrX4]

I’m definitely intrigued!!!  Intrigued enough to check out the pilot.  Look at full cast bios, clips, images and tons of other fun pre-airing fluff on the A&E site HERE.  And schedule your DVRs soon!