As someone who watched Suits when it originally ran on USA Network from 2011 to 2019, I was delighted to see how successful the legal drama was on Netflix in 2023. In fact, the series got so much attention that NBC greenlit the spinoff Suits L.A., which will star Arrow’s Stephen Amell as lead character Ted Black and is expected to premiere on the 2025 TV schedule. While I’m certainly looking forward to another corner of the Suits universe being opened up, Amell has revealed he has another TV show on the way, and frankly, I’m might be more excited about this small screen offering.
Taking to his Instagram account, Amell shared a screenshot of a Deadline article reporting that he’ll be teaming up with Minnie Driver and Hamza Haq for a crime series called Underbelly, which included a first look at Amell’s character, Officer Henry Roland. The six-part series, which will be housed on the Canadian streaming service Crave, hails from Shaftesbury, the production company behind shows like Murdoch Mysteries and Hudson & Rex. Amell, who’s also one of Underbelly’s executive producers, previously worked with Shaftesbury years before he became known around the world for playing Oliver Queen in the Arrowverse, which he highlighted in his post’s caption:
I first worked with Shaftesbury almost 20 years ago. It’s a real privilege to be back with them in a starring role. (It’s also my first chance to be an Executive Producer!! What were they thinking?!) We have a terrific cast and a wonderful team behind us. Underbelly is a ton of fun. Please don’t let your kids watch it under any circumstances whatsoever, but ya, it’s a ton of fun!! Stay tuned.
ReGenesis is the show Stephen Amell is alluding to, as he appeared in two episodes as a character named Craig Riddlemeyer. Now the time has come for him to lead his own Shaftesbury-produced series, and he’s clearly jazzed that it will be released soon, although this is one of those shows you shouldn’t have children watch. Fifth Season is co-financing and distributing Underbelly, and the series is being presented to international buyers at MIPCOM, so hopefully we’ll learn soon which streaming service it will end up on in the United States.
Created by Saving Hope’s Graeme Stewart, Underbelly takes place in the 1000 Islands region, where there’s a river that forms a border between Canada and the United States. Amell’s Henry Roland discovers evidence linking a case of missing illegal substances to Hamza Haq’s Tommy Hawley, Henry’s childhood best friend. As he carries out his mission to save Tommy and find the substances, Henry will run afoul of a British crime family led by Minnie Driver’s Mary Ferguson. Other cast members include Reservation Dogs’ Tamara Podemski, Van Helsing’s Christopher Heyerdahl, Katia Edith Wood, Jeremy Watson and Diego Klattenhoff.
Like I said earlier, I’m eager to watch Suits L.A., but as someone who watches the occasional crime series, Underbelly sounds like it’ll be a gripping watch. Plus, it sounds like this is a limited series rather than ongoing, so six episodes isn’t much of a time commitment. Now I’ll just wait to see where Underbelly ends up once it’s stateside and if I’m subscribed to its streaming home.
