There are a whole lot of reasons to be bummed when you’re the star of a much-loved television series canceled before its time. But if there’s an upside, it might very well be knowing exactly how pretty much every interview you do for the next few years is going to start: “Were you as disappointed as I was that [insert brilliant show's name here] was canceled?”
 
Luckily for this TV Addict, EVERWOOD alum Treat Williams couldn’t be more accommodating during our recent chat, admitting that while he was “surprised that EVERWOOD was canceled,” it was “kind of a blessing in disguise.” After all, says Dr. Andy Brown’s former portrayer, “Twenty-two episodes a year is a lot of work, and it was nice to spend more time with my wife and kids this year.

With the obligatory EVERWOOD question out of the way  (as if we won’t be returning to that topic eventually), we’re ready to move on and discuss the actor’s return to television with TNT’s new medical drama, HEARTLAND, premiering Monday, June 18 in the very nice 10 p.m. slot, where it will follow one of cable’s hottest hits, THE CLOSER.
 
HEARTLAND finds Williams once again playing doctor, this time playing a brilliant transplant surgeon named Nathaniel Grant. Of course, what’s a medical drama without the prerequisite family drama? If you’re thinking this sounds a little like EVERWOOD 2.0 – or maybe DR. ANDY’S ANATOMY, don’t tell Williams so.

“As an actor, you play the person not the occupation,” he explains. “If five of the next great parts are doctors, I’ll be playing five more doctors. Dr. Grant is a lot darker, with issues that are more deep-seated. He’s a workaholic, probably the guy that Andy Brown used to be prior the death of his wife”

A quick peek at the show proves him right. Unlike the small-town problems and teen melodrama that surrounded his previous character, this outing has a darker hue, as might be expected of a show revolving around the life-and-death world of transplant surgery. And Williams couldn’t be more pleased with those differences.

“[EVERWOOD creator] Greg Berlanti once told me that he was consistently trying to wrestle the WB from turning our great family drama into a teen show, which it never was. TNT has embraced the fact that HEARTLAND is a serious adult drama. In the history of my career, I’ve never seen such a great campaign for any film or television series.”

With a winning mix of serious medical drama and the obligatory office romance – all played out by a very television-friendly ensemble, including FIREFLY’S Morena Baccarin – TNT is betting that HEARTLAND will replicate the success of its time-slot lead-in, THE CLOSER. Concludes Williams, “I think it’s great drama and deeply moving. If you want to forget about your life for an hour and watch somebody else’s, I think HEARTLAND’S a great way to do it.”

While many assume the biggest surprise from yesterday’s Global TV UpFront was Adrian Pasdar’s beard (Did his character really blow up in HEROES May finale? Or is he secretly preparing for a guest spot on CAVEMAN?), this TV Addict was more taken aback by the mob of protesters that had organized in front of Massey Hall prior to the start of yesterday’s event.

The protesters, it turns out are members of ACTRA (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists) and were out in full force to voice their displeasure with the way in which they believe Canadian broadcasters are neglecting the Canadian television industry.

“Canada’s private broadcasters are eager to hand over more than $250 million dollars on new American dramas and reality shows, when they should be investing in new Canadian dramas in their own backyards,” said Richard Hardacre ACTRA’s National President. “They spend millions of dollars on American shows in what amounts to an annual crap shoot that pays out few winners.”

Amidst this horde of actors were notable TV stars including Peter Keleghan, Gordon Pinsent, Shirley Douglas, Colin Mochrie and Wendy Crewson.

“We’re here to say that they [the networks] have a responsibility to the Canadian public out of the millions and millions of dollars they make from advertising, by showing American shows, to put some back into Canadian content.” explained Wendy Crewson, “We need to hear our stories, we need to see our people and our stories on the airwaves during prime-time hours.”

Yet the question remains, do Canadians care if our broadcasters produce original Canadian content or are we content with simply enjoying the same great shows as our American friends? Needless to say, this TV Addict could care less about telling ‘our stories’ and here are a few reasons why.

1. What exactly are ‘our stories’
It seems whenever the big Canadian broadcasters pony up money to tell ‘our’ stories, we’re left with generic sub-par versions of shows that are already being done better down south. What’s so ‘Canadian’ about Global’s BLUE MURDER (a generic cop show)? THE ASSOCIATES (think GREY’S ANATOMY with lawyers)? Or the biggest culprit of all, THE MIKE BULLARD SHOW (think Jay Leno, but less funny and even worse guests). Original Canadian content should be the responsibility of the CBC (Canada’s Broadcasting Corporation), isn’t that why they’re getting our tax dollars?

2. “We need to see our people on the airwaves during prime-time hours.”
‘Our’ people, meaning Canadians are all over the airwaves. Not only do numerous hit shows currently film in Canada — see SMALLVILLE, SUPERNATURAL, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, THE DRESDEN FILES, STARGATE, THE FLASH, EUREKA! to name a few, they’re populated with hundreds if not thousands of Canadian talent both in front of and behind the camera. Add to that the Canadian stars who’ve made a name for themselves down south, I’d say Canadian talent is doing just fine.

3. “Our broadcasters have decreased their spending on Canadian drama by almost $12 million over the past year,” says Stephen Waddell, ACTRA’s National Executive Director.
There’s a reason for that — nobody watches Canadian dramas. Memo to Mr. Waddell. If given the choice between NBC’s HEROES or Canada’s REGENESIS, what do you think the majority of the Canadian public is going to watch? Why should the networks be forced to spend money on shows that nobody cares about?