The infamous murder trial of O.J. Simpson that gripped a nation in the 90s recently returned to the spotlight thanks to the FX series American Crime Story: The People vs. O.J. Simpson. One of the key figures of the original trial was prosecutor Marcia Clark (played by Sarah Paulson in American Crime Story), whose efforts to put O.J. away for his alleged crime ultimately failed. Now, Clark will get the chance to use her experience in a new series.
A legal procedural is in the works for NBC that will be based on a combination of Marcia Clark's personal experiences and the events of her new novel Blood Defense, which was published in May 2016. The show would follow the legal struggles of criminal defense attorney Samantha Brinkman. Samantha gained a reputation as a lawyer who will never give up on her clients, but she'll have to adjust her approach when she's handed an extremely high-profile Los Angeles murder case. Her life and past undergo close scrutiny as she gains unwanted public attention from the case.
The project has not yet received a name, but NBC clearly has a certain degree of faith in what Marcia Clark can bring to its roster. The network has ordered a put pilot for the potential show, according to Deadline. It's still a far cry from a series order, but it's definitely encouraging.
Although Marcia Clark's claim to fame was her role as the prosecutor for the O.J. Simpson murder trial, she actually began her legal career as a defense attorney. The project would effectively combine what she learned in her time as a defense attorney with her experiences in the limelight thanks to the Simpson case, and it should at least somewhat follow the plot of her Blood Defense novel. On the whole, we shouldn't have to worry about the potential series being just a straightforward fictionalized version of Clark's work as Simpson's prosecutor.
Marcia Clark is on board to co-write the pilot. She'll work with showbiz veteran partners Elizabeth Craft and Sara Fain, who have experience as both writers and producers on shows like Angel, The Shield, and Dollhouse. The duo have also penned novels together, so they really might be the perfect people to collaborate with Clark to bring Blood Defense to the small screen. All three are listed as executive producers as well.
This project represents the second time that Marcia Clark's novels have been developed for television. A previous series of best-selling legal thrillers were adapted for TNT as a drama. That series never made it past the pilot stage. Given Clark's relative notoriety at the moment thanks to American Crime Story: The People vs. O.J. Simpson, her new drama may have a better chance of a series order from NBC.
Only time will tell what we might get to see of Marcia Clark's show. Check out our fall TV premiere schedule to see what you'll be able to watch in the not-too-distant future.
