NBC has ordered a new “Law & Order” series from Dick Wolf, the network announced Tuesday.
The series is titled “Law & Order: Hate Crimes” and has received a 13 episode commitment. Co-created with former “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” showrunner Warren Leight, the latest installment of the iconic TV franchise is based on New York’s actual Hate Crimes Task Force, the second oldest bias-based task force in the U.S. The unit, which pledges to uphold a zero tolerance policy against discrimination of any kind, works under the NYPD’s real Special Victims Unit and often borrows SVU’s detectives to assist in their investigations. The first incarnation of this new unit will be introduced in the latter part of the upcoming 20th season of “SVU.”
“Law & Order: Hate Crimes” is set in New York City, where crimes motivated by discrimination are vigorously investigated by an elite, specially trained team of investigators. Going behind the headlines and viral videos, these diverse, dedicated and passionate detectives will stop at nothing to bring these criminals to justice.
“As with all of my crime shows, I want to depict what’s really going on in our cities and shine a light on the wide-ranging victims and show that justice can prevail,” Wolf said. “Twenty years ago when ‘SVU’ began, very few people felt comfortable coming forward and reporting these crimes, but when you bring the stories into people’s living rooms – with characters as empathetic as Olivia Benson – a real dialogue can begin. That’s what I hope we can do with this new show in a world where hate crimes have reached an egregious level.”
“Law & Order: Hate Crimes” is a Wolf Entertainment production in association with Universal Television. Wolf and Leight are creators and executive producers. Peter Jankowski and Arthur Forney will also serve as executive producers.
“Hate Crimes” will be the seventh series in the “Law & Order” franchise overall, with “SVU” currently being the only other show in the franchise to still be on the air. Last year, NBC aired “Law & Order True Crime,” with the first season of that series focusing on the Menendez murders. Edie Falco picked up an Emmy nomination for her work on that show, but there is no word on when another season of the show will air. Wolf is also preparing to launch the new procedural “FBI” on CBS, which will launch at the end of September.
(Excerpt) Read more in: Variety