The USA Network has put together a line-up of quality summer television over a period of several years until now, adding The Piper Perabo-Christopher Gorham spy series Covert Affairs to a line-up of established hits – Burn Notice, White Collar, In Plain Sight, Psych, Royal Pains and Law & Order: Criminal Intent – gives it the hottest summer programming on television – cable or network. USA’s 2010 summer line-up begins rolling out at the end of March. Details from the press release follow the jump.
MARCH
LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT (RETURNING SERIES)
Season nine of LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT gets underway March 30th as we say goodbye to old friends and welcome new faces to the Major Case Squad. LAW & ORDER: CRIMINAL INTENT stars Emmy nominee Jeff Goldblum as Detective Zach Nichols and SAG nominee Saffron Burrows (“Boston Legal,” “Troy”) as Detective Serena Stevens. Burrows plays a highly educated, worldly single parent with a broad range of life experiences to draw upon in solving even the toughest of cases. Teamed with Detective Zach Nichols, they create a partnership of challenging intellect and street-smart savvy. Dick Wolf’s third installment in the "Law & Order" franchise follows the Major Case Squad as it investigates high profile crimes. The cases often revolve around homicides, serial killers, VIPs, government officials and figureheads from the business and creative worlds. Unlike other procedural dramas, CRIMINAL INTENT focuses on the criminal psyche. Academy Award nominee Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (“Without a Trace”) steps into the role of Captain Zoe Callas after an action-packed two-part series premiere. The exciting guest line-up for season nine includes Dan Lauria (“The Wonder Years”), Ralph Macchio (“The Karate Kid”), Dan Butler (“Frasier,”) Tracy Pollan (“Law & Order: SVU”) and William Mapother (“Lost”). Premieres Tuesday, March 30 at 10/9c
IN PLAIN SIGHT (RETURNING SERIES)
The most-watched series on basic cable Sundays in 2009 returns on March 31. IN PLAIN SIGHT stars Mary McCormack as Mary Shannon, a U.S. Marshal working in the highly secretive witness protection program (WITSEC). Her job is to relocate Federal Witnesses, some of whom are career criminals, and some of whom are innocents who had the misfortune of witnessing a crime. But they all have one thing in common – someone wants them dead. Mary’s job is to make sure this doesn’t happen, while at the same time dealing with her own dysfunctional family. IN PLAIN SIGHT also stars Frederick Weller, Nichole Hiltz and Paul Ben-Victor, along with returning guest-stars Lesley Ann Warren, Cristian de la Fuente, and Joshua Malina. Oscar, Emmy and Grammy winner Rita Moreno (“Cane,” “The Guardian”), four-time Emmy winner Allison Janney (“The West Wing,” “Juno”), Steven Weber (“Wings,” “Studio 60”), Tess Harper (“No Country for Old Men,” “Breaking Bad”), Josh Cooke (“Committed,” “Four Kings”) and Donnie Wahlberg (“Boomtown,” “The Sixth Sense”) have also been cast to guest star in season three in the USA Network hit original series. Premieres Wednesday, March 31 at 10/9c
JUNE
BURN NOTICE (RETURNING SERIES)
This sexy smash hit starring Jeffrey Donovan as Michael Westen, a blacklisted spy who finds himself stranded in sun-soaked Miami, returns in June with all-new episodes. The action-packed season four of BURN NOTICE commences with a new counterintelligence expert Jesse Garcia, played by Coby Bell (“Third Watch”), who loves to fight bad guys just as much as Michael does. Heating up the night with our hot undercover agent are Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar), a beautiful ex-IRA operative who also happens to be Michael’s ex-girlfriend; Sam (Bruce Campbell), a washed-up military intelligence contact who keeps an eye on Michael for the Feds; and his mother (Emmy Award-winner Sharon Gless).
ROYAL PAINS (RETURNING SERIES)
USA’s hit series, ROYAL PAINS, was the top-ranked new series in cable history, delivering more key demos than the freshman year of any other scripted series in history. The show stars Mark Feuerstein as Hank Lawson who after becoming blacklisted from the medical community revived his career as a "doctor for hire" to the rich, famous and infamous in the Hamptons. In addition to his wealthy patients, Hank treats the town’s less fortunate, and finds himself walking the line between doing well for himself and doing good for others. The show also stars Paulo Costanzo, Reshma Shetty and Jill Flint. Henry Winkler (“Arrested Development”) joins the cast this season as Eddie R. Lawson, Hank and Evan’s father.
JULY
COVERT AFFAIRS (NEW SERIES)
USA’s newest series COVERT AFFAIRS stars Piper Perabo (“Coyote Ugly,” “Beverly Hills Chihuahua”), Christopher Gorham (“Ugly Betty,” “Jake 2.0”) Sendhil Ramamurthy (“Heroes”), , Kari Matchett (“Invasion”) and Anne Dudek (“House,” “Mad Men”), with recurring guest star Peter Gallagher (“The O.C.,” “American Beauty”). COVERT AFFAIRS will premiere with a 90-minute episode followed by 11 one-hour episodes. In COVERT AFFAIRS, we meet Annie Walker (Perabo), a young CIA trainee who is thrust into the inner sanctum of the agency when she is unexpectedly promoted to field operative. While it appears that she has been plucked from obscurity for her exceptional linguistic skills, there may be something or someone from her past that her CIA bosses are really after. Gorham plays Auggie Anderson, a CIA military intelligence agent, blinded while on assignment, and Annie’s guide in this world of bureaucracy, excitement and intrigue. Dudek plays Annie’s older sister, a married mother of two. Matchett plays Joan, head of the CIA’s Domestic Protection Division and wife of Gallagher’s Arthur, Director of Clandestine Services for the CIA.
WHITE COLLAR (RETURNING SERIES)
WHITE COLLAR stars Matt Bomer, Tim DeKay, Tiffani Thiessen, Willie Garson and Sharif Atkins in one of this fall season’s most critically acclaimed dramas about the most unlikely of partnerships between a con artist and an FBI agent. WHITE COLLAR also features James Rebhorn and Diahann Carroll, and Marsha Thomason (“Lost”) re-joins the cast for season two. This exciting crime-caper-drama, which was one of the #1 shows in cable of 2009, will kick off its second season this July with all new cases, more intrigue, more "bromance"…and more Matt Bomer, People Magazine’s "Sexiest Rising Star" of 2009.
PSYCH (RETURNING SERIES)
PSYCH, one of the seven original series that made USA #1 in basic cable for four years in a row and broke all records as the #1 original series premiere in 2006 returns this July. The cult favorite starring James Roday as police consultant Shawn Spencer who solves crimes with powers of observation so acute the precinct detectives think he’s psychic. With the help from his best friend and reluctant sidekick, Gus (Dulé Hill) and his father, Henry (Corbin Bernsen), the guys continue to solve the mysterious and often bizarre crimes of the Santa Barbara Police Department. Also starring Timothy Omundson, Maggie Lawson and Kirsten Nelson.