Tag Archives: Fire Country

Juani Feliz Tapped to Lead CBS’ Potential “The Equalizer” Spinoff

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Juani Feliz may be equalizing her career soon…

The 36-year-old Dominican actress and Titus Welliver have been tapped as the two leads of CBS‘ potential spinoff from The Equalizer.

Juani FelizThe Queen Latifah procedural will introduce the two new characters, which could anchor their own series, in Episode 516 this season.

Welliver will play Hudson Reed, a former top CIA operative with a dark secret who is connected to Robin McCall (Queen Latifah) by an old mentor.

Feliz plays Samantha Reed who has been trained by her father to be a weapons expert, skilled martial artist and true chameleon all while hiding a mysterious past.

Both Welliver and Feliz have been cast as guest stars with series regular options for the potential spinoff.

Episode 516, written by Joseph C. Wilson who’ll serve as executive producer on the potential series, will air in the spring.

It’s not designated as a backdoor pilot. CBS has been taking a more informal approach with its lead offshoot characters in storylines integrated into regular episodes of the mothership series, something the network has done twice now on Fire Country, first with Morena Baccarin, whose offshoot was picked up to series, and more recently with Jared Padalecki.

A reimagining of the classic series, The Equalizer stars Queen Latifah as Robyn McCall, an enigmatic woman with a mysterious background who uses her extensive skills as a former CIA operative to help those with nowhere else to planted spinoff efforts, introducing potential turn.

If the offshoot goes forward, its two-hander format would be a departure from the original 1985 Equalizer series, the current CBS reboot as well as the film franchise, all of which had a single lead, male (first series and movies) and female (the Queen Latifah version).

The Season 5 cast also includes Tory Kittles, Adam Goldberg, Liza Lapira, Laya DeLeon Hayes with Lorraine Toussaint.

From Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with CBS Studios, The Equalizer is executive produced by Joseph C. Wilson, Dana Owens (Queen Latifah), Debra Martin Chase, Shakim Compere, John Davis, John Fox, Loretha Jones and Rob Hanning.

The series airs on Sundays at 9:00 pm, moving to 10:00 pm on February 18.

Feliz recurs on Tracy Oliver’s Amazon television series Harlem, currently airing its third season.

Her credits also include series Fleishman Is In Trouble and DMZ and the upcoming A24 feature Civil War and AMC’s The Terror: Devil In Silver. 

CBS Renews Kevin Alejandro’s “Fire Country” for Third Season

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There’s more fuego in Kevin Alejandro’s future…

CBS has renewed is hit Friday night drama Fire Country, starring the 47-year-old Mexican American actor, for a third season.

Kevin AlejandroFrom creators and executive producers Tony Phelan, Joan Rater and Max Thieriot, the series follows Bode Donovan (Thieriot), a young convict seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence by joining a prison release firefighting program in Northern California. The program partners inmates with elite firefighters to extinguish unpredictable wildfires across the region.

When Bode is assigned to the program in his rural hometown—where he was once a golden all-American son—until his troubles begin as he burns down everything in his life, now, he’s looking for the opportunity to change his destiny.

Billy Burke, Diane Farr, Stephanie Arcila, Jordan Calloway and Jules Latimer also star.

Alejandro stars as Captain Manny Perez on the series.

Fire Country is averaging 9.21 million viewers in live 7-day multiplatform viewing, up +7% from last year, the network shares while touting the series as a top 6 in streaming on Paramount+. Currently airing on Friday nights, Fire Country is averaging 7.76 million viewers this season in linear viewing (Nielsen, Live+7).

The show has been such a hit for the network the universe could be expanding. Morena Baccarin will appear in a Season 2 episode of Fire County with an option to become a series regular in a potential spinoff series. She’ll portray Mickey, a Sheriff’s Deputy for 15 years who knows every corner of Edgewater … and every one of its inhabitants. This is her town and she’s fiercely protective of it.

The sheriff-centered episode is not considered a backdoor pilot, as the project is expected to go through another development stage before a potential series order but its reception would likely be key for the offshoot’s chances of moving forward.

CBS Studios produces the series.

New Season 2 episodes currently air Friday nights at 9:00 pm and can be streamed via Paramount+.

CBS Renews “Fire Country,” Starring Kevin Alejandro, for Second Season

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Kevin Alejandro is fired up…

CBS has renewed Fire Country, starring the 46-year-old Mexican American actor, for the 2023-2024 season.

Kevin AlejandroSince its premiere on October 7, Fire Country has averaged 8 million viewers per episode, making it the top new broadcast series of the season.

With live +35-day multiplatform viewing, more than 10 million viewers an episode have watched the procedural across linear and streaming platforms.

“It’s pretty remarkable to see a new series resonate like this with both broadcast and streaming audiences right out of the gate,” said Amy Reisenbach, president of CBS Entertainment, in a statement. “Fire Country has so many appealing entry points for the audience. It combines high-stakes action with small town charm, mystery and romance, and a family franchise at its core. We’re blessed to have an incredible team in front of and behind the camera led by amazing producers and writers and an exceptionally talented cast.”

The drama stars Max Thieriot as Bode Donovan, a young convict seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence by joining a prison release firefighting program in Northern California, where he and other inmates are partnered with elite firefighters to extinguish massive, unpredictable wildfires across the region. It’s a high-risk, high-reward assignment, and the heat is turned up when Bode is assigned to the program in his rural hometown, where he was once a golden all-American son – until his troubles began. Five years ago, Bode burned down everything in his life, leaving town with a big secret. Now he’s back, with the rap sheet of a criminal and the audacity to believe in a chance for redemption with Cal Fire.

Alejandro portrays Manny Perez, the captain of Cal Fire where Bode is sent.

Fire Country, from Jerry Bruckheimer Television and CBS Studios, is inspired by Thieriot’s experiences growing up in fire country and stems from an original idea by the actor, who also co-penned the story for the pilot with its writers, Tony Phelan and Joan Rater.

CBS to Air Kevin Alejandro’s “Fire Country” Following January’s AFC Championship Game

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Kevin Alejandro will be bringing the fire this NFL season…

CBS will air a special episode of its hit drama series Fire Country, starring the 46-year-old Mexican American, in January after the eye network airs the AFC Championship game.

Kevin AlejandroThe football game is set to take place on Sunday, January 29 at 6:40 p.m. ET with the Max Thieriot-led show airing right after.

Fire Country has been a hit with viewers ranking as the No. 1 new series this season averaging 8.26 million viewers to date. The premiere of the series on October 7 gave CBS their best seven-day audience for a series in the time period since May 8, 2020. The seven-day streaming on Paramount+, CBS.com and the CBS app, meanwhile, is up 245% from Magnum P.I. last year based on average minute audience.

Due to its initial success, Fire Country, alongside East New York and So Help Me Todd have been given full season orders.

“CBS is off to a tremendous start this season,” Kelly Kahl, President, CBS Entertainment, said in a statement. “We are thrilled to have the three most watched new series, each with their own unique settings, characters and storylines. These dramas are elevating our already successful lineup, resonating with diverse audiences both on-air and on streaming, and continuing to grow each week. We thank the talented casts, executive producers and their incredible writing and production teams for bringing these shows to life. Additional kudos to our CBS programming teams for shepherding these series to success. We are delighted to give them well deserved full season orders.”

Thieriot stars in Fire Country as Bode Donovan, a young convict seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence by joining a prison release firefighting program in Northern California, where he and other inmates are partnered with elite firefighters to extinguish massive, unpredictable wildfires across the region. It’s a high-risk, high-reward assignment, and the heat is turned up when Bode is assigned to the program in his rural hometown, where he was once a golden all-American son – until his troubles began. Five years ago, Bode burned down everything in his life, leaving town with a big secret. Now he’s back, with the rap sheet of a criminal and the audacity to believe in a chance for redemption with Cal Fire.

Alejandro portrays Manny on the series.