All you have to do is turn on your television to see the proof of Dick Wolf’s success in the television industry. The creator of the popular and long-lasting Law & Order and Chicago franchises was honored this weekend at PaleyFest in Los Angeles. We were at the Dolby Theater as the cast of Wolf’s current hits, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, and Chicago Med, all came out to salute their fearless leader.
The event’s cast which came out to support included Chicago Fire‘s Taylor Kinney and Jesse Spencer, Chicago PD‘s Jason Beghe and Sophia Bush, Chicago Med‘s Torrey DeVitto, Colin Donnell, S. Epatha Merkerson, and Oliver Platt, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit‘s Ice-T. When asked about joining Wolf’s team, newcomers like Donnell described the experience as “winning the lottery. To sit down and meet with the man himself, it’s amazing.” As for the longtime veterans of Wolf’s shows, Merkerson and Ice-T have been lucky enough to be tied for a whopping 17 years under the Law & Order, and now Chicago in Merkerson’s case, umbrella. “I got called for SVU to do 4 episodes, and it’s been 17 years,” said Ice-T with pride.
The cast was incredibly proud talking about the strong portrayal of women on all of Wolf’s show. “It’s not an accident that I play women that are strong and outspoken. There’s something about these roles (where) you’ve been given an opportunity…it gives us purpose,” says Chicago PD‘s Sophia Bush. Merkerson further elaborated “When I first started the show (Law & Order) in New York…it was really a way of bringing women into the story.” She explained a resonating theme of the night, and in all of Wolf’s shows, that “You sit down to be entertained, but when you get up you’ve been educated, you’ve learned something.”
Another source of pride in all of Wolf’s shows are the lack of technical mistakes when it comes to the legal and medical jargon. “This is where most people get their medical and legal information. In the 20 years that Law & Order was on, I don’t think anyone caught us in a legal error. The information has to be correct. So far we’re batting 1,000″ said Wolf. Chicago Med‘s DeVitto agreed, saying “I never in my life thought I would get the education that I’m getting” from playing a doctor on-screen. Platt expanded on the importance of his own role, adding “Dick was the first to figure out that there had never been a psychiatrist on (a procedural) before. Dick is obsessed with the veracity of the truth…it’s really important to represent the group of first responders in a truthful way.”
It’s been one heck of a ride for one of the most legendary television producers of all time. He has created thriving series’ out of relatable characters and real, everyday stories. People have asked if he thinks he’ll ever run out of stories to tell, to which he responds “Look at the newspaper, you can’t make this stuff up. I hope that Chicago Justice is gonna be the 4th wave of the table (of the #OneChicago franchise). It’s one of the great unknowns as to how the chemistry comes about, and when it does, it’s fantastic.”
Which Dick Wolf produced show is your favorite?
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