Flashpoint headed for season two, Swingtown for new home

August 26, 2008

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It seems only yesterday that two new shows airing on CBS this summer, cop thriller Flashpoint and adult family drama Swingtown, had their premieres, and yet their fate already looked decided about a month ago, when the network switched the time slots and moved Flashpoint from Friday to the more desirable Thursday slot.

Needless to say, the ratings followed.

Swingtown, an elegantly written drama with an excellent cast (Lana Parrilla, Miriam Shor and Molly Parker are just fantastic) that could just as easily be on HBO, is currently being shopped around to cablers after pulling in unimpressive numbers on CBS, while Flashpoint is now officially headed to the second season.

In the U.S., Flashpoint has drawn an average audience of seven million viewers per week. Not only that, but it has chalked impressive numbers in its native Canada, with almost seven million viewers in the country since the premiere, even despite running against the Olympics. It also happens to be the first Canadian series to air in primetime on a U.S. network in over a decade.

CTV has now ordered 13 more episodes of the series from Pink Sky Entertainment and Avamar Entertainment, expected to air in 2009.

Susanne Boyce, President, Creative, Content and Channels at CTV, has made the announcement, saying:

“Flashpoint has hit its mark with North American audiences and remained competitive - even during the Olympics. Viewers have embraced Flashpoint and we are answering their call for more. The cast and creative team have delivered a series that not only entertains with high-intensity drama but with heart as well.”

Executive producers Anne Marie La Traverse and Bill Mustos added: “We’re excited that Canadian audiences have responded with such enthusiasm to Flashpoint’s stories of humanity and adrenaline. We’re extremely proud to have this opportunity to bring more of our homegrown stories to viewers in Canada and around the world.”

Flashpoint is a cop procedural that follows a Toronto emergency response unit on their missions. The team includes head negotiator Gregory Parker (Enrico Colantoni), lead sniper Ed Lane (Hugh Dillon), sniper and rappelling expert Julianna Callaghan (Amy Jo Johnson), rookie sniper Sam Braddock (David Paetkau), close quarter combat expert Kevin Wordsworth (Michael Cram), explosives expert Mike Scarlatti (Sergio Di Zio), forensic psychologist Dr. Amanda Luria (Ruth Marshall) and Lewis Young (Mark Taylor), a specialist in less lethal solutions.

Production on the first season wrapped in Toronto earlier this week when, coincidentally, real-life evil thieves stole the crew’s equipment from the set and took off in the truck that carried it.

The cast and crew of Flashpoint are expected to return to the set some time in early 2009. The show has already been sold to more than 50 countries and regions worldwide. It currently airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on CTV/CBS and on demand on the CTV Video Player at ctv.ca.