L.R. Wright's classic B.C.-based crime novels make TV debut

Canada's Sunshine Coast is starring in a new TV series based on some very B.C. mystery novels. 

Nearly 40 years after the late Canadian author L.R. Wright published her first Karl Alberg novel, the mystery series has made its small screen debut in the new Fox drama Murder in a Small Town. 

The book series takes place primarily in Sechelt, B.C., though its characters end up in Vancouver and other cities like Kamloops and Calgary get the odd mention.

The TV version was filmed in nearby Gibsons — including scenes at Molly's Reach, the restaurant made famous by CBC production The Beachcombers in the 1970s and 80s — and takes place in a fictional coastal community of the same name.

Executive producer Kim Roberts said the show is intentionally vague about its location, in order to appeal to an audience outside B.C.'s coast. 

Subtle hints about the location of fictional Gibsons, like the use of U.S. money, for example, are sprinkled throughout the premiere. 

"A lot of U.S. media thought it was actually set in Canada, not in the U.S. They didn't actually grasp that this wasn't Canada," Roberts said. "We wanted to make it just a little more generic ... so that it would have the best opportunity internationally to succeed."

The show has also adapted for the times. The novels, of course, take place decades ago, before online dating and cellphones, but the show's writers have ensured a seamless transition to modern times. 

"I think it was somewhat easy actually to convert it to present times and to bring it into 2024," Roberts said.

"[Writer] Ian Weir did a fantastic job in dealing with the issues that were perhaps a little older and making them a lot more timely."

Canadian cast

Murder in a Small Town also features Canadian leads: Vancouver's Kristin Kreuk, known for Smallville and Burden of Truth, and Rossif Sutherland, the son of the late Donald Sutherland and half-brother to Kiefer.

Sutherland brings a "unique" quality to the role, executive producer Tina Pehme said. 

"He's handsome and approachable. He's so warm," she said. "He's also got that voice that you just want to keep listening to."

Sutherland has been acting since 2003, according to IMDB, and his credits include an 11-episode stint on ER and a few episodes of The Handmaid's Tale — but he's yet to score a big break. 

Pehme said this could be it. 

"I think he's a real discovery," she said. "I can't imagine anyone else doing this."

Family involvement

Another Canadian actor making an appearance in the series is Katey Wright — one of L.R. Wright's daughters, both of whom are Vancouver-based actors. 

"I think [producer] Nick Orchard was pretty determined that at least one of us was going to be involved in it," Wright said. 

Talks of adapting the series for a film began in the 1980s, thanks to Orchard, according to Katey's sister Johnna Wright. 

"[Orchard] knew our mother. He loved her books. He had this on his list for literally decades," Johnna said.

To finally see it on the screen is "astonishing," Katey said.

"It's gotten close so many times," she said, adding her mother would have been "delighted" with the adaptation.

"She would have been delighted that it was in Canada, that it was Nick. She would have been delighted with the quality and the production values and the performances, and proud as could be."

The second episode of Murder in a Small Town airs in Canada on Tuesday night on Global TV. It switches to 10 p.m. ET/PT Wednesday starting Oct. 16.