Rainn Wilson’s drama Backstrom has been given a series order over at Fox.
Based on a Swedish book series by Leif GW Persson, the series will star Wilson as Everett Backstrom, an “overweight, offensive, irascible” Portland detective who constantly struggles with his “self-destructive tendencies.” Backstrom heads the city’s newly formed Special Crimes Group, which is made up of equally as eccentric detectives.
Wilson will executive produce the series, which was adapted by Bones creator and executive producer Hart Hanson.
“Hart Hanson and Rainn Wilson are the perfect combination of creative vision and on-screen talent to bring [a] one-of-a-kind character and story like Backstrom to Fox,” Fox chairman Kevin Reilly said in a statement.
“I’ve been in business with Hart for a long time, and not only does he have a rare gift for infusing darker themes with relatable humor, he’s one of the best showrunners out there today,” Reilly added. “Together with Rainn – who absolutely nails this role and makes it a classic Fox character – I think we’ve got something really special here.”
Wilson said in a statement:
“Fox is the perfect home for this fun and disturbed piece of entertainment. They are passionate about the show and I’m ecstatic to be working with (Fox’s) Kevin Reilly again (he launched ‘The Office’ on NBC and fought tooth-and-nail for us to stay on the air, let’s not forget) and to be on the same network as my frenemy, Mindy Kaling.”
Fox has ordered 13 hour-long episodes of Backstrom , which was passed on by CBS last year. The former Office star released a trailer for the rejected pilot, which you can watch below.
Rainn Wilson will be joined by Mamie Gummer, Kristoffer Polaha, Page Kennedy, Dennis Haysbert , and Beatrice Rosen. Production on the procedure drama is expected to begin in early 2014.
Wilson had previously filmed an Office spinoff called The Farm , which would have followed his character, Dwight Schrute, as he ran his family’s beet farm and bed and breakfast. In October 2012, the Seattle native wrote on Twitter that NBC had passed on The Farm . The pilot aired as an episode in the final season of The Office in March 2013, but received mostly negative reviews from critics. Despite the poor reviews, the episode was watched by 3.54 million viewers, making The Office NBC’s highest-rated series of the night.
[Photo credit: carrie-nelson / Shutterstock.com ]
