Longmire producer Tony Tost lands new USA series Damnation
USA this week ordered a new drama series entitled Damnation, one that may have some similarities to the Robert Taylor book adaptation in that the setting is about the midwest and the heartland. The difference is that for this series, the show is traveling back in time.
The official logline offers up a further sense as to what is coming in terms of the story itself:
“Set against the backdrop of the American heartland in the 1930s, the epic saga Damnation centers on the mythic conflict and bloody struggle between big money and the downtrodden, God and greed, charlatans and prophets. The pilot introduces Seth Davenport (Killian Scott), a man masquerading as a small-town Iowa preacher in the hopes of starting a full-blown insurrection against the status quo.
“Focused on his mission, Davenport is unaware that an industrialist tycoon has hired a professional strikebreaker named Creeley Turner (Logan Marshall-Green, Quarry) to stop the uprising by any means necessary. But unbeknownst to those around them, these two men already share a secret bloody past.”
This is certainly a solid foundation for a series, one that sounds powerful and should stand out in the midst of USA’s other modern dramas. There is a gap in the market for great period drama, especially one set in this era. Boardwalk Empire is the only comparable worth mentioning.
One other thing that makes this project so interesting is that like with Longmire, there is a connection to the show and Netflix. This time around, the streaming provider will be a venue for new episodes of the show outside of the United States. This sort of co-partnership is the way of the world for many modern series, and it serves as a great venue to help keep them on the air in an era of lower ratings. Similar partnerships have assisted many other shows on the air as of late, including Nashville over on CMT and Hulu.
Damnation will premiere on USA a little bit later this year; meanwhile, Longmire will do the same thing with its own final batch of episodes.
What do you think about the idea of this series, and are you excited to check it out? Share now in the comments below! (Photo: USA.)