PREMIERE

BOBBY CANNAVALE AND SARAH PAULSON STAR IN "CUPID," A NEW ROMANTIC DRAMEDY PREMIERING TUESDAY, MARCH 31 ON ABC

Trevor Pierce sincerely believes that he is Cupid, the Roman God of love. He claims that he's been sent to New York City by Zeus to bring100 couples together before being allowed to return to Mt. Olympus, in "Cupid," a new romantic dramedy from creator/executive producer Rob Thomas premiering TUESDAY, MARCH 31 (10:02-11:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network.

As fate would have it, Trevor comes under the care of psychiatrist and self-help author Dr. Claire McCrae, who is also dedicated to helping the romantically challenged find their soul mates. But their approaches to matchmaking often clash: When it comes to true love, Claire believes it's all about friendship and compatibility, but for Trevor, heat and passion conquer all. In spite of a feisty doctor/patient relationship, Claire and Trevor form a friendship. They argue and do battle, but sometimes also enlighten.

In the premiere episode, "Pilot," it's New Year's Eve in New York. Trevor has changed the ball drop sign in Times Square from "Happy New Year" to "Holly I'm Here" for a lovelorn street musician who hopes his message will reach his intended. Despite his good intentions, though, the antics and persistence of Trevor -- who may or may not be a god -- land him in a mental institution for three months. Eventually he's found to be harmless to himself and others and is released, but under certain conditions. Placed under the care of Dr. Claire McCrae, he must attend her singles group therapy sessions on a regular basis so that she can monitor his progress. As it happens, Claire's singles sessions are an ideal place for Trevor to aim his Cupid arrows, so he's more than happy to accept this provision.

Trevor wastes no time in going about Cupid's business. He focuses his matchmaking efforts on Dave, the talented street musician from New Year's Eve, to find the woman Dave had a brief encounter with at a pub in Dublin. Anxious to match his first couple, Trevor arranges for a reporter named Madelyn to do a story on Dave's search, but Claire, who believes that love at first sight is a myth, doesn't hold out much hope for a happy ending.

Meanwhile, in need of a base from which to fulfill his mission of bringing together romantically challenged couples, Trevor rents a room above the struggling Tres Equis Cantina owned by Felix Arroyo and his sister, Lita. In exchange for rent, he becomes a bartender and creates an atmosphere for singles looking for lasting love.

Could Trevor Pierce really be Cupid? No one believes his story, but everyone finds him quite charming and, after all, he does possess a great knowledge of mythology. Despite their differing views on romantic love, Trevor knows he can turn to Claire for help and friendship. Only time will reveal who will win the battle for love.

"Cupid" stars Bobby Cannavale ("Will & Grace") as Trevor, Sarah Paulson ("The Spirit," "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip") as Claire McCrae, Rick Gomez ("What About Brian") as Felix and Camille Guaty ("Las Vegas") as Lita.

Guest starring in "Pilot" are Sean Maguire as Dave, Marguerite Moreau as Madelyn, Ty Jones as Isaac, Austin Pendleton as Dr. Boyd and Gloria Votsis as Holly.

"Pilot" was written by Rob Thomas and directed by Bharat Nalluri.

"Cupid" was created by Rob Thomas ("Veronica Mars"), who serves as executive producer/writer, along with executive producers Jennifer Gwartz ("Good Behavior," "Veronica Mars"), Danielle Stokdyk, ("Good Behavior," "Veronica Mars"), Dan Etheridge ("Good Behavior," "Veronica Mars") and Diane Ruggiero ("Dirty Sexy Money," "Veronica Mars"). "Cupid" is produced by ABC Studios.

"Cupid" is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1-channel surround sound and Spanish subtitles via secondary closed captioning. This program carries a TV-PG,D,L parental guideline.

This episode of "Cupid" will be available on ABC.com the day after airing on the network for users to watch online.