TNT Picks up Frank Darabont’s ‘L.A. Noir,’ Orders 6 Episodes

October 19, 2012

By Nicholas LaRousse

• Tweet
• Email
• Sharebar

Los Angeles Photo © Shutterstock

• Tweet
• Email
• Sharebar

• Tweet
• Email

It’s been ten months since TNT gave Frank Darabont the green light for the pilot of “L.A. Noir” but the order has finally come in for six more episodes. The show tells the story of Los Angeles in the 1940s and ’50s and the ongoing battle between the LAPD and the Mob. The drama will focus on LAPD Chief William Parker and boxer-turned-mobster Mickey Cohen as they fight for control of the city. The series is based on the novel L.A. Noir: The Struggle for the Soul of America’s Most Seductive City by John Buntin.

Darabont is known best for writing and directing “The Shawshank Redemption” but most recently for his work on the first season of “The Walking Dead.” The full cast for the show has yet to be announced but we know that Jon Bernthal, Jeffrey DeMunn, Jeremy Strong, Neal McDonough, Milo Ventimiglia, and Simon Pegg have all signed on. Frank Darabont, Michael, De Luca and Elliott Webb will executive produce the show.

No date has been set for the show’s premier. When it does hit the small screen, the show will be primed for comparisons to HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire” as well as the 1997 feature “L.A. Confidential.” Are these comparisons warranted, though? “Boardwalk” is a different era and a different city and HBO allows for a tone and style that not just any mob-crime drama can achieve, especially those not on premium cable. Although “L.A. Confidential” takes places during the same time and in the same city, a fast-paced film will always feel quicker moving than a fast-paced show. (Crossing mediums for a moment, its best comparison might come from L.A. Noire, the videogame hit from Team Bondi and Rockstar Games released last year to positive reviews, strong sales and recent rumors of a sequel.) Ergo, Frank Darabont’s “L.A. Noir” is perfectly set up to stand on its own feet as a unique addition to the world of crime noir.

Tags: Frank Darabont, John Buntin, Los Angeles, Noir, TNT