The highly-anticipated Corriedale crossover will remain a singular event rather than establishing a new direction for ITV's flagship soaps, producer Iain Macleod has confirmed.
Speaking at a press event, Mr Macleod addressed whether the special episode signals future collaborations between Coronation Street and Emmerdale.
"It's the latter, really," he said when asked if the crossover was simply a celebration of both programmes.
"People love Corrie and people love Emmerdale, and they're distinct entities, and they have their own tone of voice and their own sense of humor and their own way of telling stories."
The special episode promises high drama
|ITV
The producer emphasised that the two soaps "wouldn't blend long term at all" despite the excitement surrounding this particular project.
"But no, there are no plans to do anything similar in future," Mr Macleod added.
"Sorry, to be a killjoy to those of you who weren't hoping that it was."
The special hour-long episode centres on a devastating multi-vehicle collision that brings residents from Weatherfield and the Dales together in dramatic circumstances.
The two ITV soaps will merge for the first time
|ITV
Scheduled to broadcast at 8pm on January 5, the crossover will not receive an early release on the streaming platform ITVX.
However, viewers can catch individual half-hour instalments of each soap beforehand, with Emmerdale airing at 7pm and Coronation Street following at 7.30pm.
Both of these episodes will be available to stream from 7am that morning.
The Corriedale special serves as a tribute to the soap genre whilst simultaneously introducing ITV's revamped scheduling arrangement.
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Corriedale will air on January 5
|ITV
Director Duncan Foster outlined how the transition to consistent 30-minute episodes reflects evolving audience behaviour in the streaming age.
"What we're discovering is more and more people are watching Emmerdale and Coronation Street on ITVX, and that has upticked markedly since we started making the episodes available from 7am on the day of transmission," he explained.
The director argued that shorter instalments better suit contemporary lifestyles, noting that half-hour programmes are "way more digestible" than the previous hour-long Thursday editions of Coronation Street.
"It's the right length for soap, in my humble opinion, is what soap started as," Mr Foster said.
He suggested viewers can now more easily fit episodes around their daily routines, whether during lunch breaks, commutes, or before collecting children from school.
The newly released trailer unveiled an extensive roster of characters caught up in the carnage.
From Coronation Street, Kit Green, Carla Connor, Asha Alahan, Shona Platt and James Bailey join previously announced cast members David Platt, Tracy Barlow and Lisa Swain.
Emmerdale contributes Cain and Charity Dingle, Sarah and Robert Sugden, Jacob Gallagher and Joe Tate, alongside Aaron Dingle and Liam Cavanagh.
The promotional footage shows Kit Green assuming command in the aftermath whilst a distressed Carla attempts to comfort a casualty.
David and Shona Platt are depicted receiving roadside treatment from Emmerdale's paramedic Jacob Gallagher, with trainee paramedic Asha working alongside Cain Dingle to assist additional victims.
Pregnant characters feature prominently, with Charity seen helping a screaming Shona at Hotten General Hospital, whilst Kevin and Abi Webster desperately search for Debbie amid the wreckage.