Bluff City Law is an American legal drama television series created by Dean Georgaris and Michael Aguilar that aired on NBC from September 23 to November 25, 2019. In June 2020, the series was canceled after one season.
Premise
Set in Memphis, Tennessee, the series depicts a law firm led by attorney Elijah Strait and his daughter, Sydney. The firm handles controversial civil rights cases. This is Smits' third role portraying a lawyer in an NBC network prime-time series, the previous programs being L.A. Law and Outlaw.
Cast
Main
Jimmy Smits as Elijah Strait, a civil rights lawyer regarded as one of the most accomplished litigators of his generation.
Caitlin McGee as Sydney Strait, Elijah's daughter and a former corporate attorney. She returns to her father's firm despite lingering tensions stemming from her departure three years earlier.
Barry Sloane as Jake Reilly, a senior partner at Strait & Associates.
Michael Luwoye as Anthony Little, a former cop and partner at Strait & Associates. He and Sydney went to law school together.
Stony Blyden as Emerson Howe, an introverted paralegal working under Elijah. The pilot episode reveals that he is Sydney's half-brother from an affair her father had, who her father has subsequently adopted.
Jayne Atkinson as Della Rose Bedford, a gay senior partner at Strait & Associates and Elijah's oldest friend and confidant.
MaameYaa Boafo as Briana Logan, a seasoned paralegal and investigator who mentors Emerson.
On January 10, 2019, it was announced that NBC had given the production a pilot order. The pilot was written by Dean Georgaris who executive produces alongside David Janollari and Michael Aguilar. Production companies involved with the pilot include David Janollari Entertainment and Universal Television. On May 6, 2019, it was announced that the production had been given a series order, together with Sunnyside. A day after that, it was announced that the series would premiere in the fall of 2019 and air on Monday night entry in the 2019–20 television season at 10:00 p.m. The daily newspaper in Memphis, The Commercial Appeal, reported by June that the series would likely be filmed on location in the city, beginning on July 22, for its initial order of 10 episodes. The series premiered on September 23, 2019. On August 8, 2019, NBC ordered six extra scripts, bringing the script order to 16. On October 17, 2019, it was announced that the six extra script order was canceled and the order was reduced back to 10 episodes. On June 15, 2020, NBC canceled the series after one season.
On May 12, 2019, NBC released the first official trailer for the series.
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 38% approval rating with an average rating of 6.62/10, based on 13 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Though Bluff City Law procedural proceedings often feel outdated, fans of Jimmy Smits and Caitlin McGee may find comfort in its familiar beats." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 44 out of 100 based on 7 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
