HARRY'S LAW -- Pictured: Nate Corddry as Adam Branch -- Photo by: John Russo/NBC
Harry’s Law (Wednesdays, 9:00 p.m. ET/PT, NBC) was an instant hit when it debut last winter, but since its move to Wednesday nights, there has been a decline in the ratings.
The drop isn’t surprising considering NBC placed the dramedy in direct competition with the CBS powerhouse Criminal Minds.
Still, series star Nate Corddry, who plays Adam Branch on the show, is optimistic Harry’s Law will get a third season.
“There are so many things that go into it,” Corddry acknowledges. “The bad news is that our ratings are low. The good news is that we’re on NBC, which is the worst network in America. So, we don’t have to have wonderful ratings.”
Actually, the actor sees NBC’s status in the industry an advantage.
“NBC is getting beaten by Univision on Wednesday nights, which is just insane,” he jokes with a laugh. “We’re very lucky that there aren’t huge monster hits on this network. If we were on CBS we probably would have been cancelled by now.”
Corddry admits that the loss of cast members Aml Ameen, who starred as Malcolm and Brittany Snow, who played Jenna was a big adjustment for him. But he’s enjoying his new costars (Mark Valley, Karen Olivo) – as well as the way that storylines that have opened up since Christopher McDonald went full time on the show.
“Personally, I miss the actors (Ameen, Snow) because they’re friends of mine and they were really fun to work with,” he laments. “The good news is that we brought in fantastic actors who I’m having a lot of fun with. The changes have been great, the audiences have been showing up. We wish the ratings were better because it’s not a sure thing we’re going to get a third season.”
It’s November sweeps, which means that the networks rollout the big guns in terms of episodes. The ratings during this time determine the advertising dollars for each of the network shows. So, it’s not surprising that the next few episodes will have plenty of conflict and humor.
HARRY'S LAW -- Pictured: (l-r) Mark Valley as Oliver Richards, Kathy Bates as Harriet "Harry" Korn, George Wendt as Mayor Chickory -- Photo by: Trae Patton/NBC
Tonight Harry (Kathy Bates) goes hunting and is arrested in a small town in Ohio for driving a foreign car, which is against the law there. Naturally, Harry’s sarcastic personality doesn’t help the situation, but should create a heap of laughs.
“She’s thrown in jail by the country-bumpkin sheriff. Then the country-bumpkin judge, played by George Wendt from Cheers, is hilarious. The country-bumpkin lawyer who she defends herself against is very funny,” Corddrey says.
That same episode Adam (Corddry) is dealing with an adoption that’s gone horribly wrong, which is obviously a much heavier side to the series. And that’s precisely why Corddry is so glad to be a part of Harry’s Law.
“ It’s pretty serious stuff, but it’s a good balance with the Kathy Bates storyline. That’s the genius of David E. Kelley. He does both of those things in one 42-minute episode,” Corddry points out.
Because of that dynamic, there are times when the actors don’t see each other, though they appear in the same episode.
“The episode we’re shooting now, Kathy Bates and I are working on the same case, so I see her every day,” he begins. “Tomorrow we start a new episode where I don’t have a single scene with her. So, I won’t see her for eight days.”
It’s a strategy that works well for the storytelling on Harry’s Law. Here’s to that translating into boon ratings for the series. That’s certainly what Corddry is hoping will happen.
“This is a show that I’d like to spend the next five years of my life working on.”
Posted by Mari Cartel