CTV Orders Canadian Cop Drama

TORONTO,
November 3: CTV has ordered 11 hour-long episodes of The Bridge, a new drama executive-produced by former Toronto police
union head Craig Bromell.

The
full series order follows the production of a two-hour pilot last summer. The
show looks at street cops as they battle bad guys and their bosses to protect
society and themselves. Written by
five-time Gemini Award winner and six-time nominee Alan Di Fiore, The Bridge aims to reveal the political
machinations at work within the Canadian police force. From Entertainment One's Barna-Alper Productions, 990 Multi Media
Entertainment Company and Jonsworth Productions, The Bridge is scheduled to begin production in 2009. This is
the third new original drama series to be ordered by CTV in the last year,
joining Flashpoint and The Listener.

"Craig Bromell is one
of the most galvanizing figures in the history of policing in Canada,"
said Susanne Boyce, the president of creative, content and channels at CTV.
"We look forward to working with him on The Bridge, and bringing to Canadian audiences a distinct and
authentic view of life behind the scenes of a modern police force."

"We set out to make
the most realistic two-hour movie drama about cops ever seen on TV, and it has
paid off," said Bromell, the executive producer at 990 Multi Media
Entertainment Company. "We expose the inner workings of a big city police
force—the police, power and politics behind the blue line. It's something
that hasn’t been seen before on TV, and we're grateful to CTV for this opportunity.
We’re looking forward to collaborating with Alan Di Fiore to create even more
compelling, hard-hitting story lines for the series."

—By Mansha Daswani