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Janet King (TV series)

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Janet King
Company typeTelevision series
IndustryTelevision drama
FoundedFebruary 27, 2014; 12 years ago (2014-02-27)
Headquarters
Australia
ProductsTelevision drama series

Janet King is an Australian drama series blending legal and political themes that debuted on ABC1 on 27 February 2014. Serving as a continuation of the 2011 show Crownies, it chronicles Senior Crown Prosecutor Janet King (Marta Dusseldorp) across three seasons: beginning with the Department of Public Prosecutions in Season 1, progressing to a Royal Commission investigating Serious Firearm Crime in Season 2, and culminating with the National Crime Commission in Season 3.

While retaining a number of actors from Crownies, the series also introduced fresh characters. Initially commissioned for eight episodes, production started in 2013. The subsequent seasons were broadcast in March 2016 and May 2017 respectively.

Development

Before Crownies concluded its 22-episode run in November 2011, ABC contemplated a spin-off to extend the narrative, responding to moderate ratings and mixed critical reception. Brendan Dahill, controller of ABC1, stressed the importance of maintaining successful aspects of Crownies while exploring new creative directions alongside producers Screentime.

On 20 August 2012, ABC officially greenlit Janet King as an eight-episode legal-political thriller. The production team included Karl Zwicky, Jane Allen, and Lisa Scott as producers, with Hilary Bonney serving as story consultant. Writers such as Greg Haddrick, Jane Allen, Kris Mrksa, and Shaun Grant contributed to the scripts.

Dahill conveyed his excitement about the new series’ concept, focusing on Janet King's return to her professional duties following maternity leave amid a complex prosecution entangled with political intrigue. Des Monaghan from Screentime highlighted the strong audience connection to both the character and cast from Crownies, which encouraged further storytelling.

On 30 June 2015, ABC announced the renewal of Janet King for a second season consisting of eight episodes. By September 2016, four scripts had been confirmed for a third season. The third installment premiered on 25 May 2017, taking over from Seven Types of Ambiguity. This season focuses on organized crime within sports, featuring Janet leading an investigation at the National Crime Commission. Former colleagues Richard Stirling (Hamish Michael) and Owen Mitchell (Damian Walshe-Howling) reappear in new legal roles.

Casting

Anthony Soegito of If Magazine verified that Marta Dusseldorp would reprise her role as Janet King, alongside several returning characters from Crownies, including Hamish Michael (Richard Stirling), Ella Scott Lynch (Erin O'Shaughnessy), Andrea Demetriades (Lina Badir), Peter Kowitz (Tony Gillies), Christopher Morris (Andy Campbell), Indiana Evans (Tatum Novak), Jeanette Cronin (Tracey Samuels), Aimee Pedersen (Ashleigh Larsson), and Lewis Fitz-Gerald (David Sinclair).[1] Vince Colosimo joined the cast portraying Chief Superintendent Jack Rizzoli, with Damian Walshe-Howling playing prosecutor Owen Mitchell.[1] Additional notable performers included John Howard, Sonia Todd, Jessica Napier, Deborah Kennedy, and Tiriel Mora. However, Todd Lasance and Daniel Lissing did not return.[2]

For the second season, returning cast alongside Dusseldorp featured Hamish Michael, Andrea Demetriades, Christopher Morris, Peter Kowitz, Damian Walshe-Howling, and Terry Serio. New performers introduced included Leah Purcell, Philip Quast, Anita Hegh, Aaron Jeffery, Genevieve Hegney, Nicholas Hope, and Ewen Leslie.[3]

In season three, Dusseldorp was joined again by Michael, Demetriades, Morris, Kowitz, Walshe-Howling, and Hegh. New additions comprised Don Hany, Robert Mammone, Susie Porter, Andrew Ryan, Huw Higginson, Steve Le Marquand, Arka Das, Adam Demos,[4] Geraldine Viswanathan, and Zoe Terakes.[5] The cast also welcomed John Bach portraying Janet's estranged father Graham King.[6] Additionally, Todd Lasance returned to his Crownies character Ben McMahon.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name

Filming

The production phase kicked off in early 2013 under the direction of Grant Brown, Peter Andrikidis, and Ian Watson. Filming wrapped up by June 2013, with the series debuting on 27 February 2014. The second season's filming commenced in October 2015 and spanned 11 weeks, primarily set in Bankstown, utilizing venues such as the former library, Compass Centre, and Saigon Place. Production for the third season began in early November 2016.

Main / regular

  • Marta Dusseldorp portraying Janet King
  • Damian Walshe-Howling as Owen Mitchell
  • Hamish Michael playing Richard Stirling
  • Andrea Demetriades in the role of Lina Badir
  • Peter Kowitz as Tony Gillies SC
  • Christopher Morris as Andy Campbell (appeared in 23 episodes)
  • Anita Hegh as Sergeant Bianca Grieve (featured in 16 episodes)

Recurring

Guest Appearances

Overview of Series

Template:Series overview

Season 1 (2014)

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Episode
Number 		Title Director Writer Original Air Date Australian Viewership
(millions)


Series 2 (2016)

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Episode
no. 		Title Directed by Written by Original air date Australian viewers
(in millions)

Series 3 (2017)

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Episode
no. 		Title Directed by Written by Original air date Australian viewers
(in millions)

Reception

Ben Neutze of Crikey identified Janet as a standout "audience favourite" from Crownies and highlighted Marta Dusseldorp's increased recognition following her role in A Place to Call Home. He anticipated that this combination would contribute significantly to the show's and ABC's success. Meanwhile, Ben Pobjie from The Sydney Morning Herald commended the series for its varied content and well-maintained pacing, steering clear of common genre clichés.

Accolades

Year Award Category Nominees and Recipients Outcome
2014 AACTA Awards Best Lead Actress in a Television Drama Marta Dusseldorp Template:Won
Best Television Drama Series Janet King Template:Nom
2015 Logie Awards Most Outstanding Actress Marta Dusseldorp Template:Nom
Most Outstanding Drama Series Janet King Template:Nom
2016 AACTA Awards Best Editing in Television Nicole La Macchia Template:Nom
Best Guest or Supporting Actor in a Television Drama Hamish Michael Template:Nom
2017 Logie Awards Most Outstanding Actress Marta Dusseldorp Template:Nom
AWGIE Awards Best Script for a Television Series or Miniseries Greg Haddrick for "Playing Advantage" Template:Nom

Home media

ABC, in collaboration with Roadshow Entertainment, issued the first season on a three-disc DVD set (Region 4, PAL) on 18 April 2014, followed by its U.S. release on 21 June 2016. The second season became available in the U.S. on 25 October 2016, with the third season released there on 26 September 2017.

International

The series made its U.S. debut on Acorn TV on 14 March 2016. It is also broadcast in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Spain. While it has not aired on UK television channels, all seasons can be streamed via the STV Player, which is the on-demand service of STV, an affiliate of ITV in Scotland.

External links

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named CastConfirmed
  2. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named caster
  3. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Series2Cast
  4. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Third
  5. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named SCronin
  6. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Blundell
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