Monday, May 16, 2011

Toronto Start For Grisham's ''The Firm''

Author John Grisham’s best-seller "The Firm" has been commissioned by Global, NBC Universal and Entertainment One for an original 22-episode x 60-minute series, premiering midseason 2012 in tandem on Global and NBC as part of the networks’ fall TV seasons.

"This series is an exciting extension of the popular Grisham brand and a key addition to Global’s new fall midseason primetime lineup," said Barbara Williams, SVP, Content, Shaw Media, "...an excellent opportunity to steadily build upon our growing number of high-profile network partnerships, joining the likes of 'Titanic', 'Combat Hospital' and 'Rookie Blue'."

Executive produced by Lukas Reiter ("Law & Order") and Grisham, "The Firm" continues the story of 'Mitchell Y. McDeere' and his family, 10 years after the events of the feature film and novel.

"...As a young associate, 'Mitchell Y. McDeere' brought down 'Bendini, Lambert & Locke', a prestigious Memphis law firm operating as a front for the underworld. His life was never the same. After a difficult 10 years, which included a stay in the Federal Witness Protection Program, Mitch and his family emerge from isolation determined to reclaim their lives and their future – only to find that past dangers are still lurking and new threats are everywhere..."


The second novel by Grisham, "The Firm" was made into a 1993 feature starring Tom Cruise and Gene Hackman.

"...'Mitchell Y. McDeere' is a law student who graduated third in his class at Harvard Law School, while married to his high school sweetheart 'Abby'. His brother 'Ray' is serving a prison term, and his other brother 'Rusty' died in Vietnam.

"Mitch has offers from law firms in New York and Chicago but eventually decides to join 'Bendini, Lambert and Locke', a small tax law firm based in Memphis. The firm offers him a large salary, a lease on a new BMW, a low interest mortgage on a house, as well as paying off his student loans. Soon after he joins, his new colleagues help him study and pass his bar exam.

"Two of Mitch's colleagues die in a scuba diving accident in the Cayman Islands the week he starts at the firm. Mitch finds the deaths unsettling. During a memorial service at the firm for the two deceased attorneys, Mitch notices plaques commemorating three other attorneys who died while working at the firm. Suspicious, he hires private investigator 'Eddie Lomax', an ex-cell mate of his brother Ray, to investigate the deaths of the attorneys.

"Lomax discovers that all five of the deceased attorneys died under questionable circumstances and cautions Mitch to be careful. Soon after delivering his report to Mitch, Lomax is murdered..."

"The Firm" is produced by Entertainment One in association with Sony Pictures Television and Paramount Pictures and will be lensed on location in Toronto.

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "The Firm"...

"Murdoch Mysteries": Forensic Sleuthing In The Age Of Invention

The Toronto-lensed dramatic TV series, "Murdoch Mysteries: Season 3", is now available on DVD from Entertainment One.

"Murdoch Mysteries" stars Yannick Bisson as 'William Murdoch', a police detective working in Toronto, Ontario during the 1890's, based on the "Detective Murdoch" novels by author Maureen Jennings.

"Murdoch Mysteries" originated with three MOW's broadcast in 2004 and 2005, with Canadian actor Peter Outerbridge cast as 'Murdoch'. The original three movies, shot in both Winnipeg and Toronto.

Detective Murdoch' (Bisson) solves many of his cases using methods of detection that were unusual at that time, including fingerprinting, human-blood testing and trace evidence. His assistants are 'Inspector Brackenreid' (Thomas Craig), 'Doctor Julia Ogden' (Hélène Joy) and inexperienced partner 'Constable George Crabtree' (Jonny Harris).

Historical characters the likes of 'Buffalo Bill Cody', 'Annie Oakley', 'H. G. Wells', 'Nikola Tesla', 'Wilfrid Laurier' and 'Queen Victoria' have appeared on the show, often foreshadowing future events.

"Murdoch Mysteries" is produced/developed by Shaftesbury Films in association with Citytv, Granada International, UKTV and with the assistance of the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit, the Ontario Film and Television Tax Credit and the Canadian Television Fund.

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in a clip from the "Murdoch Mysteries"...