The Firm, based on John Grisham's best-selling novel, premiered on Sunday and moves to its regular timeslot of Thursdays at 10.00 et/pt. Grisham, who is also on board as executive producer, and executive producer/writer/showrunner Lukas Reiter (Law & Order, The Practice, Boston Legal) spoke to us about casting the series, writing the book and how relationships, not the law, drive this series.
What was it about Canadian actress Molly Parker that made her ideal for the role of Abby, Mitch's wife?
John Grisham: Well, you're asking the wrong person because I've learned a long time ago when it comes to casting these dramas, I have no talent, no expertise whatsoever.
Lukas Reiter: It is an art and who knows what makes a decision the right decision but I can tell you what I responded to, and I think what we all responded to on the creative team about Molly from the beginning: there's just such a soulfulness in her as an actress, an intelligence, a soulfulness that really comes through in everything that she does.
And really at the heart of this story has always been the relationship between Mitch and Abby in many ways. And the way that they are partners and the way that they really talk to each other and listen to each other and the way that they disagree about fighting in a mean-spirited way and that requires a certain kind of an actress to cover that type of a woman.
And we felt that Molly could do a great job and we've been right, I'm happy to say.
With The Firm as a TV series, where do you think Mitch can go as a character on TV that you've always wanted to take him or perhaps couldn't?
JG: I can't say I wanted to take Mitch anywhere. You know, when I left Mitch in the book he was pretty much on the run and probably facing a lifetime of that because he had ticked off some really nasty people. The movie was different, a very different ending, but I've never been one to go back and think about sequels or think about finding a character. Knock on wood, I've yet to suffer from writer's block. If one day I get a good case of it, I may have to go back and resurrect some of these old characters and start writing sequels but I hope not.
So when I was finished with Mitch and Abby, as a creator I was done with them. What the cool thing about the TV show is that each week you get to watch Mitch in action as a real lawyer with different cases. And that's what I've always wanted to see on television.
You both worked within the legal system. How has that experience translated into an effective working relationship before the series?
LR: Well, it's been a great transition from my time as a prosecutor. I think everything that I write, the way I approach stories are certainly impacted from some of those early experiences.
I've said before that writers and lawyers have one critical trait in common and that is the ability to think about the same thing for an irrational amount of time.
JG: Yeah, it's also like books about lawyers and trials and firms. I can read five pages of a book about a trial or thriller or whatever and normally I can tell you if the author is a lawyer or was a lawyer because there's just a certain amount of authenticity that you naturally bring the process when you've lived it and when you know what you're talking about.
LR: And it's really helped in the writers' room as well. I mean, among the other writer-producers on the project we have a former federal prosecutor, USC law professor, Chief of Staff for the Lieutenant Governor of California. We've got a guy who handled homicide cases from the defense perspective in New York. So we've got those voices helping us shape where we're headed.
Juliette Lewis and Callum Keith Rennie's characters - they're both close to Mitch and Abby. Why are these characters important?
LR: Well, I think John really began the relationship between Mitch and Ray so well. From the beginning of meeting Ray in the novel he just leaps out at you as a character that you want to know and want to know more about and want to understand the dynamic of Mitch and Ray as brothers.
And so certainly I was excited about keeping Ray a part of the family. I think their relationship and how close they are and how Mitch and Ray talk to each other is a big part of our show.
Juliette Lewis' character is Tammy Hemphill, so you see in the film the beginning seeds of some romantic interest between Ray and Tammy there.
And so with that as the kernel of inspiration we took them into a relationship together. Tammy's actually made the decision to stay with Ray and put her own life on hold and go into witness protection with him because she loves him. And so she is still part of their lives, part of the family, if you will, and so that's how come she's there in the firm and working with the crew.
And certainly that was a big part of the way we approach this. It's within the legal genre but what I hope makes it feel different to you guys and to viewers is that it's got a family at its core. This is about Mitch and his wife and their child and his brother and the woman that he loves, Tammy.
And the way that they talk to each other and the way that they relate to each other, the fact that they discuss these cases in the kitchen of the McDeere house, it is not a show about lawyers processing legal cases, it's a story about a family and their lives and their work and what interests them and how they relate to each other. So Ray and Tammy had to be there and Callum and Juliette are doing great work.
Tell us something about the witness protection program that the average person probably doesn't know, like how long a person would usually be in the program.
LR: We've certainly done some research as far as what experience is like and how it can help shape the story that we're telling and the back story for the McDeeres but, boy, there would be better folks than I to tell you the statistics about averages in the program itself.
JG: And also over the years I've kind of picked around the edges around the witness protection program trying to research for other books. And you really don't get much information. The firewall goes up with the FBI and they really don't want to talk about it. They don't really want you to know and they don't want you to write about it. So I've never been able to get much information about the program.
You just make it up. That's the world of fiction. If you want to create something - you know, I hate to do research. I'd much rather just create something than have to stop and go do the research. I'm terrible at research and pretty good at fictionalizing things so that's what I do. I'm very lazy about research. I'd rather just make it up.
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The Firm airs Thursdays at 10.00 et/pt.