Australian actor Ben Lawson has proven himself a competent television litigator by landing the lead role in USA Network’s Wild Card. Lawson will play disillusioned Wall Street attorney Will Garrett who after a night in Sin City finds new purpose in his life.
The procedural drama concerns the misbehaving denizens of Las Vegas and the lawyers they hire to make sure what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.
The chances of success for Lawson and Wild Card seem good as USA turns virtually every greenlit pilot into an ongoing series. Ending up at USA would give Wild Card a leg up on the competition, given the network’s proficiency at turning clever dramas into hit television shows.
Executive produced and written by Stephen Godchaux of Spin City and Dead Like Me fame, Wild Card is being groomed as one of six new pilots for the network – along with Eden and Over/Under – that USA is betting will help them keep the No.1 spot in cable ratings for the fifth year in a row.
According to Jeff Wachtel, president of original programming for USA Network:
“We’re fighting to stay No.1, and we have to step up our game. You do that by building up your portfolio, pushing out with a little more volume and moving outside your comfort zone by pushing with genre and tone.”
Part of USA Network’s portfolio includes the 7 shows set to return, including hits like Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains and In Plain Sight.
Like USA, Lawson most certainly has high hopes for Wild Card. After making a name for himself on the hit Australian soap opera Neighbours for almost two years, Lawson got his first chance at American stardom in the failed ABC series The Deep End. Fortunately, it appears that he has now received a second chance at landing on a hit series… and with USA behind him, it’s only a matter of time before it happens.
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Expect to see Wild Card on USA in late 2011
Source: Entertainment Weekly
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