A&E commissions pilot pair
'Beast,' 'Cleaner' on deck for cable network
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"The Beast," from Sony Pictures TV, follows an FBI man as he instructs his younger partner in the harsh realities of big-city crime. "The Cleaner," from CBS Paramount TV, is based on a real-life ex-addict/interventionist who often has to deal with criminals when he helps people shed their addictions.
Uncompromising series ideas like these "are making it easier for us to lure some of the better writers, directors and producers." said Tana Jamieson, senior VP of drama programming for A&E, the point person on the projects with her colleague Scott Vila, VP of scripted series.
A&E is getting back into the scripted original series game (its last show of this kind was the 2001-02 "100 Centre Street") after shifting its focus to reality series such as "Dog the Bounty Hunter," "Intervention" and "Gene Simmons Family Jewels."
Jamieson said A&E plans to commission a full-fledged series for next summer, choosing it from among "The Beast," "The Cleaner" and "Danny Fricke." "Fricke," a cast-contingent pilot announced last month, deals with a rugged female homicide detective.
"The Beast" is exec produced by Allan Loeb and Steven Pearl for Scarlet Fire Films; Cory Concoff for Fuel Filmworks; and the writers, William Rotko and Vincent Angell.
Robert Munic and Jonathan Prince penned "The Cleaner" and are co-exec producers with Jay Silverman and Warren Boyd.
