Sumith Prasad
The filming of Citytv’s crime series ‘Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent’ is set to start in August. The series is a part of Dick Wolf’s legendary ‘Law & Order’ franchise, which includes ongoing shows such as ‘Law & Order,’ ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,’ and ‘Law & Order: Organized Crime.’ The series borrows its name from Wolf and René Balcer’s ‘Law & Order: Criminal Intent,’ starring Vincent D’Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe. ‘Criminal Intent’ aired on NBC from 2001 to 2011. However, the series will not adapt its storylines from the namesake.
‘Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent’ will “showcase original Canadian stories written and produced by, and starring, Canadians. As a psychological thriller wrapped in a criminal investigation, ‘Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent’ follows an elite squad of detectives who investigate high-profile crime and corruption in metro Toronto,” reads the logline.
Toronto, Ontario, serves as the principal filming location of the series. Since it is a Canadian production, the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike is not expected to affect the series’ filming. The city is one of the busiest production locations internationally. Toronto hosts the production of several ongoing shows such as ‘Black Mirror,’ ‘The Boys,’ ‘What We Do in the Shadows,’ ‘Reacher,’ ‘Wednesday,’ ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ ‘Mayor of Kingstown,’ etc.
Vancouver-based Lark Productions and Cameron Pictures Inc. team up with Citytv to create the series. Universal Television, the home of the ‘Law & Order’ franchise, will distribute the show internationally. The first season, which comprises ten hour-long episodes, is slated to premiere in Spring 2024 on Citytv. The network hasn’t announced any cast additions to the series yet, which can be expected in the upcoming months.
“The timeless appeal of the cases explored in the globally successful Law & Order franchise continues to draw in Citytv audiences week after week. We’re thrilled to be in partnership with Lark Productions and Cameron Pictures Inc., to bring Canadian stories to this iconic format,” Hayden Mindell, Senior Vice President, Television, Rogers Sports & Media, said in a statement. “Our team is excited for the unique opportunity to produce a distinctly Canadian version of Criminal Intent in partnership with Cameron Pictures. We have been collaborating with Rogers Sports & Media since early last year and are thrilled to share the original vision of the adaptation with audiences,” Erin Haskett, the President of Lark Productions, added.
‘Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent’ is not the first international adaptation of ‘Law & Order.’ The Dick Wolf franchise also includes France’s ‘Paris Enquêtes Criminelles,’ Russia’s ‘Law & Order: Division of Field Investigations’ and ‘Law & Order: Criminal Intent,’ and the UK’s ‘Law & Order: UK.’
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