“Writers of 'Prison Break' debut A&E series on cops, cons working together to catch fugitives - Los Angeles Daily News” |
| Posted: BREAKOUT KINGS What: Pros and cons hook up to catch bad guys. When: 10 tonight. Where: A&E. Everybody is on the run from something. That's the premise of the drama series "Breakout Kings," which premieres tonight on A&E. Created by Matt Olmstead and Nick Santora, the writers and producers of the Fox series "Prison Break," "Breakout Kings" likewise involves convicts and lawmen, only this time on the same side. When a dangerous prisoner escapes from a maximum-security prison, the chances of catching him go down dramatically after three days. So to increase the odds, two U.S. marshals, Charlie Duchamp (Laz Alonso) and Ray Zancanelli (Domenick Lombardozzi), employ three convicts with specific skills to track them down in exchange for time off their prison sentences. Olmstead and Santora wanted to create a series in which the heroes were motivated for different reasons. "We do definitely dig into who the characters are and what their background is," says Olmstead, who was a writer and executive producer on "NYPD Blue." "One of the first things that attracted us to the show, when Nick and I were talking about it, was the design - it's not six U.S. marshals in lockstep. It's just the constant evolving chemistry of the convicts and the marshals kind of working against each other." The cons are Lloyd Lowery (Jimmi Simpson), a behavioral expert and problem gambler; Shea Daniels (Malcolm Goodwin), a systems-savvy former gangbanger; and Erica Reed (Serinda Swan), an expert tracker who learned from her bounty-hunter father. The casting of Alonso, who had a recurring role on "Southland," and Lombardozzi, who played a flawed detective on HBO's "The Wire," as tough-guy marshals seems like an obvious fit. But so, as it turned out, was hiring Simpson for the role of Lloyd. The actor, known for his comedic roles, first gained notice as Lyle the intern on "Late Night With David Letterman." He also has a recurring role in FX's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," sometimes seen wearing diapers. When they were looking for someone to play Lloyd, the brainy one of the group, Santora remembers popping in a DVD of "It's Always Sunny" while in Olmstead's office. When Simpson came onscreen, the reaction from Olmstead, who had worked with the actor on "NYPD Blue," was "the guy is a genius." "It was one of those fortuitous moments," says Santora. After the actor read for the role and walked out "we were like, `OK, that's one down, five to go."' Olmstead says the irony about the Lloyd character is that he was "inspired by - not based on," he stresses, a real-life profile that he had seen of a "gambling addict, kind of a mama's boy, on `Intervention' on A&E." "It was an interesting, complex kid for sure," says Olmstead. "So when Nick and I were breaking down the characters, I remembered this guy." "Lloyd is a bit of a wiseass," says Simpson, who was seen in last year's comedy hit "Date Night" with Steve Carell and Tina Fey. "He's kind of funny sometimes. He's a little annoying sometimes, but the show, because it has the freedom of character, allows for comedy within this kind of structure." The Canadian actress Swan, who had a recurring role in "Smallville" and was seen in "Tron: Legacy," says what she loves about the show's characters is that "we are not one-dimensional. You kind of see little, tiny bits of us being revealed as it goes along." In the second episode we find that Swan's Erica, who appears at first as a femme fatale, is a mother. "These are good people and these are bad people. It's not clearly defined," says Brooke Nevin. The actress plays Julianne, a civilian who helps coordinate the hunts for convicts. "These are just people that all have strong intentions, and they are thrown into kind of a really high-stake situation. And sometimes high drama evolves out of that, and sometimes a lot of comedy does, too, because you have a group of people that come from very different backgrounds that have to work together." The ticking-clock aspect of the show is part of what the producers hope is the appeal of the show. "After 72 hours, the odds of catching one of these fugitives plummets through the floor," says Santora. "So, while our guys are on the run, we are melding in the character stuff and the fun stuff and the interpersonal stuff while chasing this vicious guy." "Breakout Kings" was originally in development at Fox, which declined to pick up the series for the current season. A&E then picked it up. Olmstead says the show hasn't changed "tonally" from the pilot - from the initial thematic intention of keeping the momentum going,that "everybody is running from something." Olmstead says that aspect was the key to unlocking the characters. "We made sure that everybody - all of the characters - had something that they were running from and toward." Fans of Olmstead's and Santora's old series have something to look forward to. In an episode later this year, the "Prison Break" character "T-Bag," played by Robert Knepper, will break out of Fox River Prison, and the "Breakout Kings" team will chase him. If you're wondering just how tough the "Breakout Kings" actors really are, the only one who would cop to doing anything on the wrong side of the law was Swan. "I had to spend eight hours in jail (in her hometown of Vancouver) one time for unpaid parking tickets, which was absolutely horrific," says the actress. "I had no idea. They were getting sent to my parents' house. So I think I am kind of the badass of the group." 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