The CW will premiere the series “Family Law” on Sunday, October 2. The series follows lawyer and recovering alcoholic Abigail Bianchi (Jewel Staite) struggling to put her career and family back together after hitting rock bottom. As a condition of her probation, Abby is forced to work at her estranged father Harry’s (Victor Garber) firm, Svensson and Associates, and practice in family law for the first time while forging new relationships with the half-brother Daniel (Zach Smadu) and half-sister Lucy (Genelle Williams) whom she’s never met. The result is a dysfunctional family law firm operating to help other families with their own dysfunctions.
In the premiere episode entitled “Sins of the Father,” Abigail begins her probationary period at Svensson and Associates, forced to work with her estranged father and her half-siblings. She immediately oversteps her low-level position by helping Jeanette, a woman who found her sperm donor via Craigslist, track down the father of her now 13-year-old daughter and sue him for retroactive child support. But when Abigail sees the toll this case is taking on her client’s daughter (who simply wants a relationship with her dad) she fears her intervention might tear this family apart; mirroring her own family situation. Meanwhile, Abby is still stung by her separation from her husband Frank and misses her kids terribly. Lastly, Daniel, is dealing with a custody battle of his own…an arbitration over a pug called Craig. Lauren Holly also stars.
The cast recently got together to talk about the series and to share what US audiences can expect from their characters and their family dynamic.
Victor Garber on Harry’s current relationship with Abby: “Abigail and Harry is fraught, it’s fractured. And this is an attempt on, on both their parts to try to mend it. Um, and it’s, it’s, of course like all relationships, it takes more than you realize. And, and that is the thrust of the first… that is, that’s the beginning, and it continues throughout the season. Uh, and it’s you know, it’s family law and in, in, in so many different ways. And they’re trying, they’re trying to find common ground, and they’re, they’re just not quite making it.”
Adds Jewel who plays Abigail: “Which is interesting because Abby and Harry are very similar. They’re both really stubborn. They both like to win the argument. They both love to argue. So the dynamic is, is fraught, but it’s also really interesting to play because there are so many similarities between the two them that they haven’t noticed yet, of course.”
In addition to trying to repair her relationship with her father, Abby has to form relationships with her two siblings, a brother and a sister (she’s never met), who are lawyers themselves.
Of the family dynamic, Zach who plays Daniel says, “The fun of the dynamic between all of us as…we’re somewhat combative and, and private people who are all kind of forced together, both within the family life and also within the law firm. And how was that to play? I mean, to be honest, that’s, that’s not so easy, cause we actually genuinely really get along. But maybe that’s probably why it’s, it’s, it’s easy to kind of step into that in the acting world, cause we, we trust each other, we love being around each other on set, going to work. And, you know, there are no egos, there’s no, no, no problems, interpersonal problems, it’s just fun. And so, you know, whatever the scene requires, it kind of, kind of came second nature to us. We were able to find that dynamic between all the siblings and, and with our, our father figure Harry as well, I think.”
Genelle Williams who plays younger sister Lucy says of the family dynamic, “I would say like Zach is more like the big brother. You know, like Genelle and we’re, Zach is very good at kind of calming everyone down. (We’re crazy, that’s what she wants…) He’s the voice of reason and he’s like, he’s a calming presence. So when Zach is around you, I, you just automatically feel, like my shoulders drop and, and he’s just got that kind of presence. So I would say if anybody, you know, in the sibling relationship is like the older, sage, more wise sibling.”
“Family Law” premieres Sunday, October 2 on The CW.
