Latino Cop Family Drama From Leonard Goldberg & Paul Attanasio Gets CBS Pilot Order; Rodrigo Garcia To Direct
CBS has given a pilot order to a Latino cop family drama from Bull co-creator Paul Attanasio and Blue Bloods executive producer Leonard Goldberg & co-EP/director David Barrett.
Written by Homicide creator Attanasio in a return to the cop drama beat, the untitled drama revolves around the multi-generational members of a Mexican-American family with deep roots in San Diego intertwine personally and professionally due to their powerful careers in law enforcement. Rodrigo Garcia, who directed the pilot for Bull, will directed the pilot and will executive produce with Attanasio, Goldberg and Barrett for CBS Television Studios.
Goldberg, Barrett and CBS had been trying for two years to develop a drama about a multi-genererational Latino family of cops in Los Angeles — a West Coast take on Blue Bloods, which is about a multi-generational New York family in law enforcement. Last season, a project known as Protect & Serve was written by Elizabeth Davis Beall. It didn’t go to pilot, but CBS and Goldberg kept at it. The concept was put into redevelopment, and last summer Blue Bloods executive producer Siobhan Byrne O’Connor was brought in as a new writer.
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I hear that project did not progress beyond early development stages. Meanwhile, Attanasio met with the producers and had a brand-new take on how to crack the general Latino family cop idea, which led to his San Diego-set script that now is getting a pilot green light.
The new setting has an increased relevance post-elections as San Diego is on the U.S.-Mexico border where President Donald Trump is planning to build a wall.
The Latino family cop drama had become an important project for CBS as the network has been working to increase on-screen and off-screen diversity after facing criticism on the issue. It was referenced by CBS Entertainment president Glenn Geller last summer as an example of introducing diversity in an organic way.
“I think it’s about finding diversity where it is organically baked into the concept,” he told Deadline. “But it has to come from the creator’s vision, and we have to hear more diverse pitches.“
A series pickup for the Attanasio pilot would give 83-year-old veteran Goldberg, a member of the CBS Corp. board, two shows on CBS.
Bull, which Attanasio co-created with Phil McGraw based on McGraw’s experience as jury consultant, has been CBS’ strongest new drama series, receiving a full-season order.
This is CBS’ seventh drama pilot order this season.
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