It's the start of a new week and that means it's time for a brand-new roundup of crime drama news:
THE BIG SCREEN/MOVIES
Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Andrew Scott has come aboard Chloe Domont’s legal thriller, A Place in Hell, alongside Michelle Williams and Daisy Edgar Jones. Written and directed by Domont, the film follows two women at a high profile criminal law firm. Scott will next be seen in Wake Up Dead Man, the third installment of Netflix’s Knives Out films, and starred in the title role in the streamer’s acclaimed series, Ripley.
Shout! Studios has acquired North American rights to the crime thriller Just Breathe, starring Kyle Gallner (Strange Darling), from Motion Picture Exchange and Rockwood Champ. Marking the feature debut of writer-director Paul P. Pompa III, Just Breathe follows Nick Bianco (Gallner), who plans to rebuild his life and win back the love of his life after a year spent in prison for assault. Upon his release, Nick learns that the target of his affections has another admirer, Chester (Shawn Ashmore), his no-nonsense parole officer. Nick soon finds himself caught in a tense rivalry that threatens not only his second chance at love but also his chance to stay out of prison.
Saban Films has acquired U.S. rights to In Cold Light, a crime thriller starring Maika Monroe (Longlegs), as well as Academy Award winners Troy Kotsur (CODA) and Helen Hunt (As Good As It Gets), which had its world premiere in the Spotlight section of the Tribeca Festival on June 7. Marking the first English-language feature from Canadian filmmaker Maxime Giroux (The Great Darkened Days), the film will be released in theaters nationwide later this year. In Cold Light is set in a fractured city where loyalty is currency and violence speaks loudest, following Ava (Monroe), who’s newly released from prison and ready to reclaim her territory—until she witnesses a brutal crime that forces her to run. Hunted by enemies and haunted by her past, Ava is pulled into a desperate fight for survival.
Amazon MGM Studios is developing Ally Clark, a new thriller starring Oscar winner Viola Davis. Ally Clark takes us from the marble halls of Washington, D.C. to the sweltering bayous of Louisiana and the icy peaks of Alaska, following investigator Ally Clark (Davis) as she embarks on a perilous inquiry into an international conglomerate following the suspicious death of a close friend. Phillip Noyce (Clear and Present Danger; Salt) will direct from a script by Jose Ruisanchez and Irwin Winkler.
TELEVISION/STREAMING
Sophia Stallone has launched development on Mindf*ck for Amazon MGM Studios, a series adaptation of the popular psychological thriller book series by the late S.T. Abby. A five-book series, Mindf*ck began as a self-published effort for Abby before growing into a phenomenon, landing a slot on numerous "most addictive reads" lists. At the heart of the story is Lana Myers, a seductive, calculating serial killer with a morally-charged mission: avenging her traumatic past by systematically eliminating the men who assaulted her, destroyed her family, and walked away free. Lana’s carefully constructed world begins to unravel when she falls for Logan Bennett, an FBI profiler investigating the very murders she’s committing. Their connection is immediate, intense, and impossibly dangerous—a love story shaped by vengeance, secrets, and emotional reckoning.
Dougray Scott (Crime and Vigil) is leading the BBC’s adaptation of J.J. Arcanjo’s Crookhaven: The School for Thieves. Scott will play Caspian Lockett, the headmaster and leader of the secretive Crookhaven, a school for crooks where students learn how to hone their skills in order to do good. Based on the hit book series, the students, or Crooklings, are trained to perfect their unusual skills to bring balance, justice and order to the outside world. Scott is joined by Claire Forlani (Industry), who plays his wife Carmen, along with Keith Allen (Shallow Grave) and Naomi Wirthner (Slow Horses).
Psych alumna Maggie Lawson is returning to the TV police ranks as a series regular on CBS's upcoming Blue Bloods universe series, Boston Blue. She joins previously cast Donnie Wahlberg, Sonequa Martin-Green, and Ernie Hudson. In Boston Blue, Wahlberg will reprise his Blue Bloods role as NYPD Officer Danny Reagan as he takes a position with Boston PD. Once in Boston, he is paired with Detective Lena Silver (Martin-Green), the eldest daughter of a prominent law enforcement family. Lawson will play Sarah Silver, the strong-willed and decisive Superintendent in the Boston Police Department who is Lena’s stepsister.
Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother) is set to appear in the Netflix and A+E Studios hit series, The Lincoln Lawyer, in the Season 4 finale. She'll play Allison, an important character connected to Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), whose storyline could continue into Season 5. The storyline was teed up at the end of the Season 3 finale when Haller was pulled over and arrested after the body of a client was found in the trunk of his Lincoln. Next season will see Mickey defending himself as he goes on trial for murder. He will face off with the prosecutor on the case, Dana Berg (Constance Zimmer), who has ties to his first ex-wife, Maggie (Neve Campbell). The season is based on The Law of Innocence, the sixth book in Michael Connelly’s The Lincoln Lawyer series.
USA Network has set August 15 for the premiere of The Rainmaker, USA’s upcoming legal drama series based on the John Grisham novel. The network also released the first trailer and some first-look photos. The series follows Rudy Baylor (played by Milo Callaghan) who, fresh out of law school, goes head-to-head with courtroom lion Leo Drummond (John Slattery) and his law school girlfriend, Sarah Plankmore (Madison Iseman). Rudy, along with his boss (Lana Parrilla) and her disheveled paralegal, uncover two connected conspiracies surrounding the mysterious death of their client’s son.
Fox has determined the fate of two bubble shows, canceling crime dramas Alert: Missing Persons Unit after three seasons and The Cleaning Lady after four. The network had delayed final decisions on its remaining bubble series until after their current seasons had aired. Alert wrapped its Season 3 run on May 27, and The Cleaning Lady's fourth season ended on June 3.
PODCASTS/RADIO/AUDIO
Crime Time FM focused on writing for adults and children with Janice Hallett (The Examiner; The Appeal) and Maz Evans (That'll Teach Her).
On the latest episode of Murder Junction, Vaseem Khan and Abir Mukherjee spoke to crime writer Mark Billingham about his nineteenth Tom Thorne novel, What the Night Brings, and also about his "wobbly dog."
Debbi Mack's guest on the latest Crime Cafe podcast was crime writer J.D. Barker, whose work has been broadly described as suspense thrillers, often incorporating elements of horror, crime mystery, science fiction, and the supernatural.
On Read or Dead, Katie McLain Horner and Kendra Winchester recommended summer mystery reads.
