TNT Renews Closer for
Third 15-Episode Season

Kyra Sedgwick Stars in the Detective Drama Series Third Season Launches Summer 2007 on TNT

TNT’s blockbuster original series The Closer – which ranks as ad-supported cable’s top original scripted series of the year and which kicked off its second season with record-breaking numbers – has been renewed for a third 15-episode season, according to an announcement today by Steve Koonin, executive vice president and chief operating officer for TNT and sister network TBS. This gripping drama series stars Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominee Kyra Sedgwick (Something To Talk About, TNT’s Door to Door) as an Atlanta detective transferred to Los Angeles to head the Priority Homicide Division. The Closer, currently running Mondays at 9 p.m. (ET/PT), comes to TNT from The Shephard/Robin Company in association with Warner Bros. Television and is executive-produced by Greer Shephard (Nip/Tuck, The D.A.), Michael M. Robin (Nip/Tuck, The D.A., NYPD Blue) and James Duff (The D.A., The Agency), and produced by Andrew J. Sacks (The D.A, Adaptation, Two Soliders). Gil Garcetti, Los Angeles district attorney from 1992 to 2000, is a consulting producer on the series.

The Closer’s second-season launch on Monday, June 12, scored ad-supported cable’s largest audience delivery ever for an original scripted series telecast, beating its own record set with the premiere episode of season one, according to data from Nielsen Media Research. The series follows the ever-challenging world of Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson (Sedgwick), a transplant from Atlanta who heads up the Priority Homicide Division of the Los Angeles Police Department. Her position on this elite detective squad, which handles high-profile cases of a sensitive nature, is a tenuous balancing act.

She faces sometimes-antagonistic roadblocks, even from her own peers, but she and her team forge ahead solving difficult crimes, despite some who are still wary of her unconventional style. Meanwhile, she finds herself trying to keep her head above water in the rushing mayhem of Los Angeles, finding comfort with FBI Agent Fritz Howard (Jon Tenney) or sometimes in a package of snack cakes.

But Brenda’s primary focus is her job. She has an impeccable talent for knowing a person’s secrets and obtaining confessions, with skills that stem from understanding her own quirks, imperfections and neuroses. No matter the personal costs, she does whatever it takes to find out the truth.

The Closer’s Screen Actors Guild Awards-nominated ensemble cast includes Jon Tenney (You Can Count on Me, Get Real) as FBI Agent Fritz Howard, Brenda’s love interest who also sometimes assists her on investigations; J.K. Simmons (Spider-Man, Law & Order, Oz) as Brenda’s boss, Assistant Police Chief Will Pope, with whom she once had an affair; Corey Reynolds (The Terminal, Tony nominee for Hairspray) as Sgt. David Gabriel, Brenda’s right-hand man; Robert Gossett (Arlington Road, The Net) as Commander Taylor, head of the robbery homicide division and a frequent thorn in Brenda’s side; G.W. Bailey (M*A*S*H, St. Elsewhere, Police Academy) as quick-witted veteran Detective Lt. Provenza; Tony Denison (Melrose Place, The Amy Fisher Story) as slick Detective Andy Flynn; Michael Paul Chan (Robbery Homicide Division, The Insider) as technology-minded Detective Mike Tao; Raymond Cruz (Collateral Damage, Training Day) as Detective Julio Sanchez; and Gina Ravera (The Temptations, Soul Food) as Detective Irene Daniels.