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BԪַLaw and Order TorontoBԪַ showrunners feeling the pressure on multiple fronts

American TV staple reaches north for new show focused on CanadaBԪַs largest city
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Cast members (left to right) Karen Robinson, Aden Young, Kathleen Munroe, and K.C. Collins pose for a photo at a press junket as they promote the television series BԪַLaw & Order Toronto: Criminal IntentBԪַ in Toronto on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Nobody wants to be the person who mucked up the BԪַLaw & OrderBԪַ franchise.

ItBԪַs a fear thatBԪַs haunted veteran procedural writer Tassie Cameron since she embarked on the most daunting responsibility of her career: turning Dick WolfBԪַs beloved legal drama into the new Canadian spinoff BԪַLaw & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent.BԪַ

Despite years of experience writing on BԪַRookie Blue,BԪַ BԪַPretty Hard CasesBԪַ and BԪַMary Kills People,BԪַ she quivers at the responsibility she holds as the showBԪַs Thursday broadcast premiere approaches.

BԪַI think we all feel a tremendous amount of pressure not to let down Toronto (or) Canada BԪַ itBԪַs horrifying,BԪַ the showrunner said.

BԪַPeople have such embedded expectations about the show because almost everybodyBԪַs watched it and has feelings.

BԪַYou donBԪַt want to disappoint the franchise holders in the States, but you donBԪַt want to disappoint your country. And it starts to feel big like that. I know that sounds ridiculous.BԪַ

Sitting alongside fellow executive producer Erin Haskett at their production office, the pair are discussing how far theyBԪַve come in only a few months.

ItBԪַs December of last year and the Canadian production has one shooting day in the whirlwind season, which came together on tight timelines as the dual Hollywood writer and actor strikes halted many other films and TV series.

BԪַThe show got greenlit the first week of June, with one script,BԪַ Haskett said.

BԪַThen it was like, oh my God, we need nine more,BԪַ added Cameron.

BԪַSo I was calling writers (asking,) BԪַIs anybody available tomorrow to sit in a room with me for two weeks to start writing this thing?BԪַ

BԪַLaw & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent,BԪַ a co-production between RogersBԪַ media division and Vancouver-based Lark Productions, was filming on the streets of Toronto before the end of August, Haskett noted.

BԪַAnd itBԪַs been (working) night and day pretty much since then,BԪַ she added.

The show follows detectives Henry Graff, played by Aden Young, and Frankie Bateman, played by Kathleen Munroe, as they investigate high-profile homicides in CanadaBԪַs largest city.

The cases featured on the show are ripped from the headlines and inspired by real-life criminal investigations.

The showBԪַs leading cast also includes Karen Robinson as inspector Vivienne Holness, and K.C. Collins as deputy crown attorney Theo Forrester.

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