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2 | Cover story
TV Media Weekly | October 12 - 18, 2013
Murder, romance and 'Betrayal'
ABC's new prime time drama heats things up
By Kyla Brewer
TV Media
A
t the dawn of the television era, daytime soap operas were one of the staples of weekday programming. But, with the decline of the
stay-at-home housewife, daytime
dramas have suffered, and their
ratings are but a shadow of what
they once were.
However, that doesn't mean
that scandalous affairs and overthe-top villains haven't found a
new home on TV. These days, prime
time has all the soapy drama fans
are after.
The latest salacious series to enter prime time comes from ABC, a
network that's been gaining a reputation for such programs since
the heyday of its hit "Desperate
Housewives." Airing Sunday, Oct.
13, on the alphanetwork, "Betrayal" follows the story of two people
who share an instant attraction,
despite the fact that they're both
married.
British actress Hannah Ware
("Boss") leads the cast as professional photographer Sara, who
can't seem to deny her attraction
to mystery man Jack (Stuart
Townsend, "Queen of the
Damned," 2002). Unfortunately,
both of them are married — she to
ambitious prosecutor Drew (Chris
Johnson, "The Vampire Diaries")
and he to Elaine (Wendy Moniz,
"Guiding Light"), a Chicago restaurateur.
"Betrayal" has had people talking since before its debut. A teaser
for the show released prior to the
premiere featured a pivotal scene
between the two main characters,
who meet at a train station. Sara
faces a difficult choice when she
must decide whether or not to get
on the train.
"It's a huge decision and it has
huge implications," explained
Ware. "She has consciously made
a decision to spend an afternoon
with someone she is incredibly attracted to."
Although they initially make a
noble effort to remain true to their
significant others, the attraction
between Sara and Jack proves too
powerful and they give in to their
desires, much like any good soap
opera characters would do. As if
that wasn't enough, the series has
much, much more to titillate viewers each week. Things get a whole
lot more complicated for Jack and
Sara when a murder rocks their respective worlds.
It turns out that Elaine's father,
Thatcher (James Cromwell,
"Babe," 1995), is a rather shady
businessman and Jack is employed
as his counsel. When Thatcher's
brother-in-law is murdered,
Thatcher's mentally challenged
son T.J. (Henry Thomas, "The Last
Ride," 2012) becomes the prime
suspect. Drew tackles the case as
lead prosecutor, hoping it could
further his political career, while
Jack is forced to serve as the lawyer for the defense.
That's some heavy subject matter, but the talented cast is more
than qualified to handle it. Ware
may be most memorable to American TV audiences as Emma Kane
opposite Kelsey Grammer in the
STARZ series "Boss," but she's also
appeared on the big screen in such
films as "Cop Out" (2010) and
"Shame" (2011). Her co-star,
Townsend, has appeared in many
feature films, including "Chaos
Theory" (2008) and "The League
of Extraordinary Gentlemen"
(2003), but the Irish actor is best
known — by far — for his turn as
Lestat in 2002's "Queen of the
Damned," based on Anne Rice's
acclaimed novel.
Supporting castmate Cromwell
is most memorable for his Academy Award-nominated role as
Farmer Hoggett in "Babe," but he
also boasts an impressive list of TV
credits, appearing in such hits as
"24," "Boardwalk Empire" and
"American Horror Story," a gig that
recently netted him his first Emmy
award. In contrast, viewers may
not instantly recognize Thomas,
but he was part of one of the film
industry's most successful movies
of all time. As a child, he rose to
fame thanks to his starring role as
Elliott in Steven Spielberg's "E.T.
The Extra-Terrestrial" (1982). He
Stuart Townsend stars in "Betrayal"
worked with another legendary di- thanks to lead-in "Revenge." Starring Emily VanCamp ("Brothers &
rector when he was cast in Martin
Sisters"), the series centers on a
Scorsese's "Gangs of New York"
vengeful young woman who seeks
(2002) and more recently made
justice for her father's wrongful imwaves as music legend Hank Wilprisonment years earlier. Set in the
liams in "The Last Ride." Moniz
should have no problem with "Be- lavish community of the Hamptons, the series has beat out timetrayal's" sudsy storylines, having
slot competitors over at CBS and
made her mark in television as DiNBC and has even spawned an
nah Marler in "Guiding Light," a
original novel, "Schooled in Rerole that earned her two Soap Opvenge." ABC's guilty pleasure this
era Digest Award nominations. In
summer — "Mistresses," starring
addition to his work on "The Vampire Diaries," Johnson appeared in
the Lifetime series "Against the
Wall."
The "Hollywood Reporter"
broke the news that D.B. Sweeney
would join the cast of "Betrayal" in
the sixth episode as Richard Gross,
Celebrations
director of the criminal division of
the state attorney's office.
1 x 2"
Full of twists and turns, not to
mention romance, the series is in
line with a recent wave of primetime soaps, especially on ABC. In
fact, fans of the genre can enjoy at
least two hours of soapy drama,
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