Outlaw (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Outlaw is an American television series that was aired on the NBC
network. The one-hour courtroom drama stars Jimmy Smits
as a Supreme Court Justice
who resigns from the bench to start his own law firm, as a way to more directly promote the ends of justice. The series premiered on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 (a day earlier in Canada
), and began airing on Fridays beginning September 24.
On October 11 Outlaw was announced as canceled by NBC and the remaining four episodes were moved to a Saturday time slot. The series finale aired on November 13, 2010.
, which was written by John Eisendrath, in late January 2010. In mid February, Terry George signed on to direct the pilot.
Jesse Bradford was the first actor cast in early March. Jimmy Smits was cast next to headline the drama. Carly Pope and David Ramsey came on board a few days later. Filming for the pilot took place in late March and April, with some exterior shots done in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
and neighboring Bensalem
, Atlantic City, New Jersey
, and in the Arlington, Virginia area.
NBC announced in mid-May 2010 that the network had picked up the pilot for the 2010–11 season. The series was expected to be produced in Los Angeles.
On October 6, NBC announced it had placed production of the series on hiatus due to low ratings for the first three episodes. The hiatus became permanent after ratings failed to improve for the October 8 broadcast. Eight of the planned thirteen episodes have been produced.
Four episodes had aired when NBC announced Outlaw cancellation. The remaining four aired on Saturdays through November 13.
based on 23 reviews from television critics. Barry Garron of The Hollywood Reporter
appreciated the potential of Outlaw though he called the premise preposterous and likened it to a fairy tale. Garron continued by comparing some of his previous work and saying that "Smits continues to be a commanding presence in a courtroom drama." John Doyle
of The Globe and Mail
said that Outlaw is "not the best advertisement for quality TV drama" and neglected to mention the Canadian premiere the day before in his review. Doyle concluded by saying the show is "for fans of melodramatic legal shows only."
In its first airing against CBS's new drama Blue Bloods
, on September 24, 2010, Outlaw was watched by roughly 4.893 million viewers, while Blue Bloods was watched by 13.013 million.
in Canada and debuted in the U.S. on NBC
on September 15, 2010. Though NBC moved Outlaw to Saturdays when they cancelled the show Global continued to broadcast the remaining episodes on Fridays.
at 9:30pm, and it has been confirmed the entire season will air during the summer non-ratings period.
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
network. The one-hour courtroom drama stars Jimmy Smits
Jimmy Smits
Jimmy Smits is an American actor. Smits is perhaps best known for his roles as attorney Victor Sifuentes on the 1980s legal drama L.A. Law, as NYPD Detective Bobby Simone on the 1990s police drama NYPD Blue, and as Congressman Matt Santos on The West Wing...
as a Supreme Court Justice
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States...
who resigns from the bench to start his own law firm, as a way to more directly promote the ends of justice. The series premiered on Wednesday, September 15, 2010 (a day earlier in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
), and began airing on Fridays beginning September 24.
On October 11 Outlaw was announced as canceled by NBC and the remaining four episodes were moved to a Saturday time slot. The series finale aired on November 13, 2010.
Development and production
The series was originally titled Rough Justice, and then briefly Garza. NBC green-lit the pilotTelevision pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
, which was written by John Eisendrath, in late January 2010. In mid February, Terry George signed on to direct the pilot.
Jesse Bradford was the first actor cast in early March. Jimmy Smits was cast next to headline the drama. Carly Pope and David Ramsey came on board a few days later. Filming for the pilot took place in late March and April, with some exterior shots done in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
and neighboring Bensalem
Bensalem Township, Pennsylvania
Bensalem Township is a township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States which borders the northeast section of Philadelphia. The township is composed of many communities, including Bensalem, Trevose, Oakford, Cornwells Heights, Eddington, and Andalusia...
, Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
, and in the Arlington, Virginia area.
NBC announced in mid-May 2010 that the network had picked up the pilot for the 2010–11 season. The series was expected to be produced in Los Angeles.
On October 6, NBC announced it had placed production of the series on hiatus due to low ratings for the first three episodes. The hiatus became permanent after ratings failed to improve for the October 8 broadcast. Eight of the planned thirteen episodes have been produced.
Four episodes had aired when NBC announced Outlaw cancellation. The remaining four aired on Saturdays through November 13.
Cast
- Jimmy SmitsJimmy SmitsJimmy Smits is an American actor. Smits is perhaps best known for his roles as attorney Victor Sifuentes on the 1980s legal drama L.A. Law, as NYPD Detective Bobby Simone on the 1990s police drama NYPD Blue, and as Congressman Matt Santos on The West Wing...
as Cyrus Garza - David RamseyDavid Ramsey (actor)David Ramsey is an American actor, best known for his roles in the Showtime TV series Dexter as Anton Briggs and the film Mother and Child.-Life and career:...
as Al Druzinsky - Ellen Woglom as Mereta Stockman
- Carly PopeCarly Pope-Early life:Pope was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, with an older brother, Kris, also an actor, and a younger brother, Alexander. She began acting during her high school years in Vancouver where she appeared in stage classics such as The Odd Couple, playing Mickey, and A Midsummer...
as Lucinda Pearl - Jesse BradfordJesse Bradford- Early life :Bradford was born Jesse Bradford Watrouse in Norwalk, Connecticut, the only child of actors Terry Porter and Curtis Watrouse, who appeared in commercials, soap operas, and industrial films. His mother also played his character's mother in Hackers...
as Eddie Franks - Melora HardinMelora HardinMelora Diane Hardin is an American actress, best known for her roles as Jan Levinson on NBC's The Office and Trudy Monk on USA's Monk.-Early life:...
as Claire Sax (recurring)
Reception
As of September 15, 2010, Outlaw has an average score of 36/100 on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
based on 23 reviews from television critics. Barry Garron of The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
appreciated the potential of Outlaw though he called the premise preposterous and likened it to a fairy tale. Garron continued by comparing some of his previous work and saying that "Smits continues to be a commanding presence in a courtroom drama." John Doyle
John Doyle (critic)
John Doyle is one of the two television critics with Canada's The Globe and Mail newspaper. Doyle also covers major football events for the paper....
of The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
said that Outlaw is "not the best advertisement for quality TV drama" and neglected to mention the Canadian premiere the day before in his review. Doyle concluded by saying the show is "for fans of melodramatic legal shows only."
In its first airing against CBS's new drama Blue Bloods
Blue Bloods (TV series)
Blue Bloods is an American police procedural/drama series on CBS, filmed on location in New York City. The show premiered on September 24, 2010, with episodes airing on Fridays at 10:00 pm Eastern and Pacific/9:00 PM Central and Mountain....
, on September 24, 2010, Outlaw was watched by roughly 4.893 million viewers, while Blue Bloods was watched by 13.013 million.
DVD release
On January 24th, 2011, in conjunction with Amazon.com's manufactured-on-demand (MOD) program, a DVD of all 8 episodes of the series was released. The cover art consists of the promotional poster, with a Universal logo and border around it.Episode list
The series premiered September 14, 2010 on GlobalGlobal Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
in Canada and debuted in the U.S. on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
on September 15, 2010. Though NBC moved Outlaw to Saturdays when they cancelled the show Global continued to broadcast the remaining episodes on Fridays.
| # | Title | Directed by | Written by | U.S. viewers (million) |
Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
International broadcast
- Will begin airing after November 28, 2010 on Seven NetworkSeven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
at 9:30pm, and it has been confirmed the entire season will air during the summer non-ratings period.