Canadian network promises diversity
TORONTO — New seasons of Transplant and Jann are among the shows bound for CTV as Bell Media navigates COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns and vows to increase representation and diversity in its content.
The company announced its upcoming lineup on Tuesday, including a second season of the hit homegrown medical drama Transplant, starring Hamza Haq as a Syrian doctor building a new life in Canada. An air date hasn’t been announced.
And the Canadian comedy Jann, from singer-songwriteractor Jann Arden, will première a second season this fall and has been renewed for a third.
New shows on the CTV docket include Filthy Rich, starring Vancouver Island-raised Kim Cattrall as the wife of a wealthy patriarch, played by Gerald McRaney, whose sudden death reveals his secret life.
There’s also Chuck Lorre’s new comedy B Positive, starring Thomas Middleditch and Annaleigh Ashford as an unlikely duo who bond during his search for a kidney donor.
Bell Media did not make executives available for interviews Tuesday.
In a statement, Randy Lennox, president of Bell Media, said given “recent events” the company will “work diligently to increase the representation of diverse voices in front of and behind-the-scenes in the content we create.”
Lennox’s comments echoed those in a Bell Media statement on June 12, in which the company announced a Content Diversity Task Force in partnership with BIPOC TV & Film, a grassroots organization and collective of Black, Indigenous and People of Colour.
Such actions come amid the Black Lives Matter movement and urgent calls for broadcasters to amplify marginalized voices.
Meanwhile, earlier this month CTV cut ties with I Do, Redo host Jessica Mulroney after she was accused by Sasha Exeter of threatening the Toronto lifestyle influencer’s career and using her white privilege to “silence a Black woman.” The controversy promoted the celebrity stylist’s husband, Ben Mulroney, to step aside as anchor of CTV’s etalk on Monday to make room for “diverse voices.”
And last week, TSN issued a statement saying anchor Kayla Grey has the network’s full support, and it regretted previously issuing an “unclear” statement after a user on social media engaged in what the network calls “reprehensible attacks on her character.”
Like other Canadian broadcasters, Bell Media had an online presentation to reveal its upcoming lineup, which also includes a revival of the classic 1960s game show Supermarket Sweep, hosted and executive produced by comedy star Leslie Jones.
Other new series include Holmes Family Effect, The Surrealtor and the previously announced Children Ruin Everything.
Returning Canadian series include Corner Gas Animated, The Amazing Race Canada,
Wynonna Earp and Letterkenny.
American shows returning include The Good Doctor, Grey’s Anatomy, This is Us, The Masked Singer, Young Sheldon, The Conners, The Amazing Race, Law & Order: SVU, Blue Bloods and Bob Hearts Abishola.
Among other highlights on the schedule are new documentaries on singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie and comedian Howie Mandel, and Inconvenient Indian, based on Thomas King’s national bestseller.
Meanwhile, Corus Entertainment will be the exclusive Canadian broadcaster of original programming on NBCUniversal’s streaming platform Peacock.
The company announced the agreement Tuesday while unveiling its 2020-2021 fall/winter lineup.
The deal will see Peacock’s star-studded slate of original shows, including revivals of Punky Brewster and Saved by the Bell air across Corus networks and streaming platforms.
The American streamer’s new series include Girls5eva from Tina Fey and Rutherford Falls, a comedy set in a New York town that borders an Indigenous reserve, created by Sierra Teller Ornelas alongside The Office alumni Ed Helms and Mike Schur.
Global’s fall primetime lineup will see the debut of much-anticipated series such as Departure,a Canada/U.K. co-production starring Emmy winner Archie Panjabi and Canadian Oscar winner Christopher Plummer, a CBS remake of The Equalizer featuring Queen Latifah, and American sci-fi drama neXt with Mad Men actor John Slattery.