Posted in: Current News, Editor's Picks TV News, Movies, TV | Tagged: ABC, Alert, Burn, cable streaming, crime drama, family drama, Gone, James Patterson, Michael Bennett, Rick Cleveland, Run For Your Life, Step on a Crack, television, Tick Tock, tv, Worst Case

ABC Bringing James Patterson's Michael Bennett Books To Series

ABC's family of shows is about to get a whole lot bigger as the network is developing Michael Bennett, a police/family drama series based on the popular character from a number of James Patterson's bestselling novels. Written by The Man In the High Castle co-executive producer Rick Cleveland (Under the Dome, House of Cards), this is ABC's second attempt at a Michael Bennett series: their first effort was in 2012 with a completely different creative team. Cleveland executive produces with James Patterson Entertainment's Patterson, Bill Robinson and Leopoldo Gout; as well as Bob Sertner for ABC Studios.

The series centers on NYPD Detective Michael Bennett, who is something of a living legend on the force. Brilliant, seasoned and highly dedicated, he is a master homicide investigator who can crack the city's toughest cases without breaking a sweat. At home, though…it's a bit of a different story. Following the death of his beloved wife years earlier, Bennett became a single father to their diverse brood of not one…not two…but six adopted children. He is a well-meaning and devoted dad, but raising that many kids on his own is a struggle, to say the least, and balancing his personal and professional lives is always an epic challenge.

In the past, Patterson has often stated that the character of Bennett was "inspired by the brave heroes of the NYPD" and a composite of the officers he's gotten to know throughout his life. The top-selling detective series consists of eight novels, beginning with 2009's Step On A Crack and continuing through Run For Your Life (2009); Worst Case (2009); Tick Tock (2010); I, Michael Bennett (2012); Gone (2013); Burn (2014); and Alert (2015).

James Patterson Entertainment has a number of projects currently in play: the Alan Cumming-starrer Instinct and crime drama Innocent with Siobhan Byrne O'Connor (Blue Bloods) and Glenn Geller at CBS; and Showtime acquiring the series rights to The President Is Missing, the upcoming thriller novel by Patterson and President Bill Clinton.

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