Bravo announced today from the Banff World Media Festival that it has ordered 19-2, an English adaptation of the popular French-Canadian series of the same name, set for broadcast in early 2014.  Ten, one-hour episodes will be shot in Quebec this fall, and will be produced by Montreal’s Sphere Media Plus and co-producers Echo Media. Bruce Smith (DURHAM COUNTY) acts as showrunner with Jesse Mckeown (DAVINCI’S INQUEST, ROGUE) will serve as co-executive producer. With an average audience of 1.4 million viewers, 19-2 was a monster hit in Quebec, where the series premiered in 2011 and consistently won its timeslot in the A25-54 demo.

19-2 follows the lives of patrol officers Ben Chartier (Jared Keeso, FALLING SKIES) and Nick Barron (Adrian Holmes, ARROW). Nick is a veteran on Montreal’s urban police force and has just returned from a three-month leave following the traumatic shooting of his partner. On his first day back, he is unhappy to learn he has been partnered with Ben, who has just transferred from a small town to restart his life in the big city. Both men are good cops, who deeply care about the job, yet struggle to move beyond painful events in their past. Ben and Nick must attempt to put their differences aside as their lives further intertwine, both professionally and personally, and continue to take surprising and dramatic turns.

“Fuelled by a terrific cast and strong storylines, we’re tremendously excited to add 19-2 to the Bravo lineup,” said Catherine MacLeod, Vice-President, Specialty Channels, Bell Media. “We are confident that our partnership with Sphere Media Plus and Echo Media on this project will deliver a series that audiences will be fully engaged in.”

19-2 is co-produced by Sphere Media Plus and Echo Media in association with Bravo. Executive producers of the series are Jocelyn Deschênes and Carolyn Newman from Sphere Media Plus and Luc Chatelain from Echo Media. Showrunner Bruce Smith will also acts as a writer.

“19-2 was the buzz show of the Quebec TV season and with good reason. It’s an extraordinary series, a gritty cop drama that has echoes of THE WIRE, HOMICIDE, NYPD BLUE and HILL STREET BLUES.” – Brendan Kelly, Montreal Gazette

Source: BBM Canada, Quebec Franco