NBC has picked up The Hunting Party, a new drama series from Universal Television (UTV).
The series is described as a high-concept crime procedural about a small team of investigators who are assembled to track down and capture the most dangerous killers our country has ever seen, all of whom have just escaped from a top-secret prison that’s not supposed to exist.
The Hunting Party is created and written by JJ Bailey (Echo), who inked a deal with UTV back in August 2022. Bailey will take on co-showrunner duties with Jake Coburn (The Endgame), who also writes and executive produces.
At first glance the series seems reminiscent — in a good way — of NBC’s flagship drama The Blacklist. The series starring James Spader, ran for 10 seasons on NBC before ending in 2023, and featured a secret Task Force assigned to take down the FBI’s actual most-wanted felons with the help of James Spader’s Raymond “Red” Reddington, aka the Concierge of Crime.
NBC tried again to recapture some of that same crime thriller lightning in a bottle with 2022’s The Endgame, starring Morena Baccarin and Ryan Michelle Bathé as a criminal mastermind squaring off against a principled FBI agent. However the series was cancelled after only one season.
The Hunting Party may yet fill the Blacklist-shaped hole in our hearts. In the meantime, we are interested to see what Coburn’s latest creative work in this landscape will yield for fans of the format.
The series is currently slated to appear on NBC’s 2024/25 primetime broadcast slate. Other strike-delayed shows which may also appear are the Zachary Quinto-starring medical drama Dr. Wolf, and comedy series St. Denis Medical.
More as we have it.
