Dick Wolf’s vast scripted universe is expanding again, this time to streaming.
Today, Prime Video has released a sneak peek image of On Call, the thrilling new half-hour drama from Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television.
Co-created by Tim Walsh and Elliot Wolf, On Call is Wolf Entertainment’s first scripted streaming series, and all eight episodes will Premiering exclusively on Prime Video in over 240 countries and territories around the world on January 9, 2025.
“On Call” is an adrenaline-packed police drama that follows a pair of rookie and veteran police officers on patrol in Long Beach, California.
This innovative series combines body cameras, dash cams and cell phone lenses to create an authentic cinematic effect. It explores the ethics of protecting and serving the community.
The series stars Troian Bellisario (Pretty Little Liars) as Tracy Harmon, a tough but protective veteran police officer who works hard while training the next generation of officers. The police station found its place.
Brandon Laracunt (“The Good Doctor”) stars as Alex Diaz, an ambitious newcomer struggling to maintain a positive outlook as he realizes the challenges he will face in today’s climate.
Other cast members include Eric LaSalle (ER, Logan) as Sergeant Rathman, who also serves as an executive producer on the series and directed several episodes; Lori Loughlin (The Calling Heart”) as Lieutenant Bishop; Rich Ting as Sergeant Hill (Tulsa King).
The most shocking thing about this news (besides seeing Loughlin front and center in the casting notice) is that it’s taken this long for Wolfverse to debut a scripted series on streaming.
The entire universe of “Law & Order,” “Chicago,” and the “FBI” franchise has proven their power by keeping various anchors alive over the years.
We’ve only scratched the surface of streaming programming.
Prior to “On Call,” Max announced the medical drama “Pete,” directed by John Wells and starring Noah Wyle.
Since streamers are already making tons of cash from these long-running shows, we fully expect their peers to grow significantly.
The only thing that might stand in the way of their similar success is timing. People like the idea of following a group of people every week for 20+ weeks.
This is how you build a following – slowly making your audience become so attached to a character that they’ll go to the end of the web to see more of them.
It remains to be seen whether shorter productions, shorter episode times and longer gaps between seasons can achieve the same success.
This critic doesn’t believe this is possible, but it’s an argument I’m willing to lose.
Dick Wolf (“Law & Order,” “Chicago,” the FBI franchise), Tim Walsh (“Chicago P.D.,” “High City,” “Nightcrawler”), Elliott Wolfe (” Ozark,” “The Chase”), Eric LaSalle (former EP/director of “Chicago P.D.”) and Peter Jankoski are executive producers.
The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Pictures Group, and Amazon-MGM Studios, in association with Wolf Entertainment.
Are you ready for Dick Wolf to take over streaming? Do you think shorter programs and short-run programming can attract audiences to broadcast services?
Leave a comment below and tell us what you think!
