Tag Archives: Victor Garber

Global greenlights Season 4 of original scripted series Family Law

From a media release:

All rise! Today, Global announced that hit Canadian legal drama Family Law has been greenlit for a fourth season with 10 all-new episodes. Produced by SEVEN24 Films and Lark Productions, and created by Canadian award-winning author Susin Nielsen, Season 4 starts production in Vancouver this March. Jewel Staite, Victor Garber, Zach Smadu, Genelle Williams and Lauren Holly are all set to return for the new season. This renewal comes ahead of the show’s highly anticipated Season 3 Canadian premiere, set to be announced later this year.

Season 4 of the hit Canadian legal drama Family Law finds Abigail Bianchi (Jewel Staite) tackling intriguing new cases as she juggles work, family, and her love life. Abigail’s father Harry (Victor Garber), and her half-siblings Daniel (Zach Smadu) and Lucy (Genelle Williams) face their own unique challenges, balancing their ever-complicated professional and personal lives. The team continues to grapple with unconventional cases this season including surrogacy, parental liability and “rental families” – all while managing their own fraught family dynamics.

Viewers can catch up on Seasons 1 and 2 of Family Law only on STACKTV and the Global TV App.

Family Law is produced by SEVEN24 Films (HeartlandJANN) and Lark Productions (Allegiance, Law and Order Toronto: Criminal Intent). It was created by Susin Nielsen (Robson ArmsCedar Cove), who also serves as executive producer and showrunner. The series is executive produced by Jordy Randall, Tom Cox, Erin Haskett and Andy Mikita. This season’s writers include Sarah Dodd, Ken Craw, Sonja Bennett and Corey Liu. Directors include Andy Mikita, David Frazee, Alysse Leite-Rogers, Siobhan Devine and Damon Vignale.eOne distributes the series internationally.

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New seasons of Canadian original dramas Family Law and Departure return

From a media release:

Canada’s biggest stars shine bright this summer on Global with the return of Global scripted series Family Law and Departure, plus new reality competition series Superfan adds even more star power to this summer’s hottest schedule. The wait is over for Family Law Season 2, premiering Monday, May 22 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Global and STACKTV. The principal cast including Canadians Jewel Staite, Victor Garber, Zach Smadu, Genelle Williams and Lauren Holly all return for the new season, which was the #1 new Canadian series when it debuted. Then, fresh off five nominations at this year’s Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Drama Series, Departure Season 3 promises to bring the action this summer when it returns Monday, August 7 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Global and STACKTV. Acclaimed Canadian actor Eric McCormack joins Emmy Award® winner Archie Panjabi and the rest of the ensemble cast as they investigate the sinking of a sea ferry destined for Newfoundland.

Airing Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT beginning May 22, Family Law Season 2 follows Abby (Jewel Staite) and her dysfunctional family as they help other dysfunctional families – all while navigating their own personal dramas. After six months’ probation at her father’s firm, Abby’s getting into the groove of family law –but her marriage is a trainwreck. Harry (Victor Garber), meanwhile, has finally made Daniel (Zach Smadu) a partner – but is he ready to share his firm with his son? Daniel’s quest for approval leads him to a carefree woman who is definitely not his type, or is she? And Lucy (Genelle Williams) is crashing at Joanne’s, hoping she can fix things with a newly-pregnant Maggie –and getting up her older sister’s nose at the same time.

Then later this summer, Departure Season 3 sets sail Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT starting August 7. The all-new, six-part event series follows the investigation into the sinking of a sea ferry, The Queen of the Narrows. It’s a beautiful day in Boston when almost 500 passengers board the ferry destined for Newfoundland, Canada. A few hours into the journey an “explosion” onboard throws passengers into a panic, rushing for lifeboats as the ferry takes on water with alarming speed. What unfolds for many of the passengers is an unimaginable nightmare with serious loss of life as the ship sinks in record time. The investigation team, led by Kendra Malley (Archie Panjabi) begin to unravel the many tangled threads of the investigation all in search of one answer: why did the Queen of the Narrows suddenly sink to the bottom of the sea?

Stay tuned for more summer lineup announcements coming soon, including the premiere date for the much-anticipated new Global Original Robyn Hood from prolific Canadian music video director and renowned TV director and filmmaker Director X. Plus another exciting new season of Big Brother!

Global’s entertaining lineup of hit series are also all available to stream anytime on STACKTV, GlobalTV.com and the Global TV App.

Family Law is produced by SEVEN24 Films (Heartland, JANN) and Lark Productions (Motive, Fortunate Son). It was created by Susin Nielsen (Robson Arms, Cedar Cove), who also serves as executive producer and showrunner. The series is executive produced by Jordy Randall, Tom Cox, Erin Haskett and Andy Mikita. For Corus, Susan Alexander is Production Executive; Rachel Nelson is Vice President, Original Content, Scripted, Factual and Kids; Lisa Godfrey is Senior Vice President of Original Content and Corus Studios; Colin Bohm is Executive Vice President of Content and Corporate Strategy.

Christina Jennings, Scott Garvie, Paul Pope, Jackie May, and Archie Panjabi are Departure’s executive producers, joined by Vincent Shiao and T.J. Scott. Patrick Cassavetti and Julie Lacey are the series producers. Executive producing for Starlings are Chris Philip and Karine Martin, along with Propagate Content’s Ben Silverman; Red Arrow Studios International’s Tim Gerhartz Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia, and Laura Beetz; and Sleeping Giant’s David A. Stern and D. Matt Geller. Departure is directed by T.J. Scott and created by Vincent Shiao. For Corus, Kathleen Meek is Production Executive; Rachel Nelson is Vice President, Original Content, Scripted, Factual and Kids; Lisa Godfrey is Senior Vice President of Original Content and Corus Studios; Colin Bohm is Executive Vice President of Content and Corporate Strategy.

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Global greenlights Season 3 of original scripted series Family Law

From a media release:

The verdict is in! Today, Global announced that Season 3 of hit Canadian legal drama Family Law has been greenlit for an all-new 10-episode season. Produced by SEVEN24 Films and Lark Productions, and created by Canadian award-winning author Susin Nielsen, Season 3 is set to begin filming in Vancouver on May 24. The principal cast including Jewel Staite, Victor Garber, Zach Smadu, Genelle Williams and Lauren Holly all return for the new season. This renewal comes ahead of the show’s Season 2 premiere, which will be announced at a later date.

Family Law is a witty, heartfelt look at the trials and tribulations of an imperfect family. The one-hour legal drama follows Abigail ‘Abby’ Bianchi (Jewel Staite) as she navigates her new life with her family including Abby’s father Harry Svensson (Victor Garber), her half-brother Daniel Svensson (Zach Smadu), and half-sister Lucy Svensson (Genelle Williams). Season 3 will follow Abby and her dysfunctional family as they help other dysfunctional families – all while navigating their own personal dramas. Guest stars for the new season will be announced soon.

Lauded as “the unexpected drama worth bingeing right now,” viewers can catch up on Season 1 of Family Law with STACKTV and the Global TV App.

Family Law is produced by SEVEN24 Films (HeartlandJANN) and Lark Productions (MotiveFortunate Son). It was created by Susin Nielsen (Robson ArmsCedar Cove), who also serves as executive producer and showrunner. The series is executive produced by Jordy Randall, Tom Cox, Erin Haskett and Andy Mikita. This season’s writers include Sarah Dodd, Ken Craw, Sonja Bennett, Corey Liu and Jordan Hall, and directors include Andy Mikita, Jordan Canning, David Frazee and Alysse Leite-Rogers.

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Family Law’s Susin Nielsen: “I know a lot about family function and dysfunction”

The old adage “write what you know,” certainly applies to Susin Nielsen’s latest creation, Family Law. She admits that she didn’t know anything about the law, but knew plenty about family. In fact, what happens to her lead character happened to Nielsen.

Debuting Friday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Global (with a special preview of the premiere episode on Thursday at 10 p.m. ET/PT), Family Law stars Jewel Staite as Vancouver lawyer—and recovering alcoholic—”Abigail “Abby” Bianchi. As a condition of her probation to return to her legal duties, Abby must work at the firm owned by her estranged father, Harry (Victor Garber), alongside her half-brother Daniel (Zach Smadu) and half-sister Lucy (Genelle Williams). Throw in Abby’s husband Frank (Luke Camilleri), mother Joanne (Lauren Holly), daughter Sofia (Eden Summer Gilmore) and son Nico (Brenden Sunderland), and there is plenty to mine for drama and laughs.

With legal dramas a popular genre, what truly sets Family Law apart is sharp writing and stunning performances by the cast, led by Staite.

We spoke to Susin Nielsen about about the road to making Family Law, which has already shot its second season.

How did Family Law come to be?
Susin Nielsen: I actually first came up with this idea about a decade ago, and brought it to SEVEN24 — they’ve always been my partners with it — and we got it into development at another network, but they didn’t move forward with it. And then flash forward I guess about, five years and Jordy Randall at SEVEN24 called and he said, ‘We’ve never stopped thinking about Family Law and we see another opportunity to pitch it.’

So I went to [the] Banff [World Media Festival] and I pitched it to Susan Alexander and Rachel Nelson at Corus in 2018, and I think it was a lot of serendipity, it was right time, right place. I think I had made the idea stronger and better as well, and they put us into development and then they gave us more development, and then eventually they green-lit us.

In terms of the creative origins, when I first came up with the idea, there was a part of me that was trying to be shrewd. I’m not usually very shrewd when it comes to my writing, but it seemed like what was selling were procedurals, and I knew that for me and my sensibilities, I was probably never going to do a cop show. A hospital show just felt so out of my area of expertise. And certainly, I also really know nothing about law, but I knew a lot about family. I know a lot about family function and dysfunction, and my own family background somewhat mirrors Abby’s in that I didn’t meet my father until I was a teenager. At which point, I also met my half-brother and my half-sister.

I think that’s kind of always informed, probably, a lot of my writing. It just felt like a premise that I got really excited about. What if there was this woman who had been estranged from her father for all of these years, carried a huge chip on her shoulder, is almost disbarred because of her alcoholism and the only lawyer in town who will take her on is her dad? What I really loved about it was that I could explore family on three levels. I could explore the cases. I could explore Abby having to work with these people who she’s really just getting to know, and at the same time she’s trying to salvage her marriage and her relationship with her children.

The cast that you’ve got is incredible. Victor Garber, Jewel Staite, Zach Smadu, Genelle Williams, Lauren Holly. You must be pinching yourself every day that you got to work with these folks.
SN: Thank you for bringing all of them up. I do pinch myself. What’s interesting is that not only are they obviously exceptional actors, they’re also incredibly lovely people and Jewel really sets the tone on set for all of our actors coming in. They all hang out all the time during the season, like every single weekend they were doing things together, doing dinners, it was hilarious. They don’t have to do that, they could just say, nice to see you, see you on Monday.

What was so interesting about Jewel was that she could just elevate whatever was in a scene. She could take a comedic scene and just — with a look — make it that much funnier. And a heartfelt scene, again, just with a look, and make you tear up even more. The three siblings, they got their rhythm together so fast and the looks that passed between Abby and Daniel all the time, they all just add all sorts of layers that are obviously not there on the page.

And then Victor. I, in a million years, never ever thought we’d get Victor Garber. Like he was like my dream Harry, but I just thought, ‘Well, that’s fantasy, but you’re never going to get Victor Garber.’ And it’s just been such a pleasure working with him, he’s just a consummate professional. I think he’s had two questions for me about script. He just comes in and he delivers.

Let’s switch over to the writer’s room. In addition to you, we’ve got Corey Liu, Damon Vignale, Sarah Dodd, Ken Craw and Sonja Bennett. What’s your writing process with the team?
SN: I knew I wanted, if I could, a 100 per cent a Vancouver-based room because we have a lot of really talented writers here. Everybody in that room had a story of their own, and certainly when we were developing Season 1, there was no such thing as a worldwide pandemic yet, so we were able to do all of it in person.

We would meet at Lark Productions, which is our producer here on the ground in Vancouver. We would just meet in this big, open boardroom and start hammering out ideas. First, we would talk about character arcs for the season and I had initial documents with things that I had been thinking about and case ideas that I had had since 2011, and the writers brought their own ideas to the room. Then we just started talking about case ideas and what excited us, and how could a case relate back to the family?

What do you look for in a writer?
SN: You’re looking for a group that are going to compliment each other for sure, and different people bringing different strengths to the table. The one commonality I was looking for were people who could write believable, compelling dialogue, people who could do both drama and comedy, comedy coming out of character. I felt very blessed to get Sarah Dodd because Sarah has, frankly, a lot more experience than I do, particularly with procedural. She’s done a lot of procedural. So it was fabulous to have her there just to make sure that we were structurally sound as well. Sarah is all those other things as well, but she brought oodles of procedural experience.

Sonja Bennett is so funny and she can make it look effortless with her lightness of touch with her dialogue; her dialogue’s fabulous. And then Cory Liu … I have a real soft spot for Corey. Seeing him grow over the last two seasons has just been exceptional. He is so talented and he will rule the world one day, I am sure. It’s been such a pleasure to watch him grow into his own confidence, because I don’t think he understood just quite how talented he was.

Family Law airs Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Global.

Images courtesy of Corus.

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New Global original series Family Law begins production March 2

From a media release:

On the heels of the Nurses Season 2 start of production release, Global proudly announced today principal photography and casting for its latest scripted original series, new legal drama Family Law. With filming beginning March 2 in Vancouver, Family Law is produced by SEVEN24 Films (Heartland, Wynonna Earp) and Lark Productions (Motive, Fortunate Son), created by Canadian award-winning author Susin Nielsen (Robson Arms, Cedar Cove), with Jordan Canning (Nurses, Schitt’s Creek) directing the pilot episode.

Set to premiere on Global later this year, the 10-episode, one-hour drama follows a group of flawed family members who reluctantly work together at their father’s law firm in downtown Vancouver. The legal procedural stars a talented all-Canadian cast including: Jewel Staite (Firefly), as recovering alcoholic Abigail ‘Abby’ Bianchi; Victor Garber (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow) as Harry Svensson, Abby’s estranged father and head of the firm; Zach Smadu (The Expanse) as Daniel Svensson, Abby’s half-brother who is displeased to be working with Abby; and Genelle Williams (The Expanse) as Lucy Svensson, Abby’s half-sister and considered dad’s favourite child. Additional casting will be announced at a later date.

Set in Vancouver, Canada, Family Law follows lawyer and recovering alcoholic Abigail ‘Abby’ Bianchi (Staite) struggling to put her career and family back together after hitting rock bottom. As a condition of her probation, Abby is forced to work at her estranged father’s (Garber) firm, Svensson and Associates, and practice in family law for the first time while forging new relationships with the half-brother (Smadu) and half-sister (Williams) whom she’s never met. The result is a dysfunctional family law firm operating to help other families with their own dysfunctions.                 

Produced by SEVEN24 Films (Heartland, Fortunate Son) and Lark Productions (Motive, Fortunate Son), with Susin Nielsen (Robson Arms, Cedar Cove) serving as showrunner, Family Law is executive produced by SEVEN24′s Tom Cox and Jordy Randall, Lark’s Erin Haskett and Andy Mikita. eOne will handle distribution for the series outside of Canada.Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail