Joan Rater: Last News

SPOILER ALERT! This story contains plot points from Friday’s episode of Fire Country on CBS.

SPOILER ALERT! This story contains plot points from Friday’s episode of Fire Country on CBS.

CBS has renewed the hit Friday night drama Fire Country for a third season.

EXCLUSIVE: Tye White (American Auto) and Jason O’Mara (The Man in the High Castle) are set for key recurring roles on the upcoming second season of CBS drama series Fire Country.

Monday was move-in day for the writers of CBS’ Fire Country who spent the morning unpacking boxes in their new (larger) office space on the Radford lot, an upgrade from the crammed bungalow/trailer they occupied last year, possibly in recognition of Fire Country ending the 2022-23 as the most watched new broadcast series.

Aramide Tinubu The story of Anne Frank, the Jewish teenager who hid in a cramped attic with her family during the Nazi occupation in Amsterdam, is widely known, and amid the atrocities of the Holocaust, Anne’s diary presents a story of resilience and unrealized dreams. Nat Geo’s new limited series “A Small Light” isn’t Anne’s story, though the precocious teen’s legacy is embedded throughout. The brainchild of former “Grey’s Anatomy” showrunners Tony Phelan and Joan Rater, the series is a tale of resistance, activism and humanity. The narrative centers on one tenacious young woman, Miep Gies, Otto Frank’s secretary, who risked everything to save the Frank family, and countless others. Beautifully shot by Phelan, Susanna Fogel and Leslie Hope, with a slight sepia tone to ground the audience in the time period, the series opens on July 6, 1942, when the Frank family goes into hiding. Miep (Bel Powley) is tasked with getting Otto’s (Liev Schreiber) eldest daughter Margot (Ashley Brooke) through a Nazi checkpoint and into the secret annex above the office building where Miep and Otto work. Quick thinking and determined, Miep ushers the teen to safety via bicycle past the gun-toting and cruel German soldiers. It’s the first of many risks she takes to combat the racist, authoritarian regime.

Marta Balaga Miep Gies, as well as her husband Jan, helped hide Anne Frank and her family from the Nazis in Amsterdam, she also saved the girl’s diary. But she never considered herself a hero. “She didn’t want to be put on a pedestal. Her mantra was: ‘I just did what human beings are supposed to do and helped someone in need,’” Bel Powley, who plays Gies in National Geographic series “A Small Light,” said Saturday at Canneseries. The international premiere of the first episode screened at the international series festival in Cannes, followed by an on-stage discussion. Amira Casar, “Peaky Blinders” alumnus Joe Cole, Liev Schreiber and Billie Boullet also star in the eight-episode show, which was co-created by Tony Phelan and Joan Rater.

A Small Light star Bel Powley and creator, writer and executive producer Joan Rater joined Deadline’s Contenders TV event Saturday to discuss the Holocaust-centric series and the importance of highlighting a different aspect of the era onscreen. 

of Anne Frank, the young woman who kept a diary during her time hiding from the Nazis during World War II and who, along with most of her family, was killed in the Holocaust. But the story you may not be as familiar with is that of Miep Gies, who went to great lengths to hide the Franks and other families for two years. Now Gies's story is coming to the small screen across several Disney properties in the eight-part limited series A Small Light, which as Gies and Liev Schreiber as Otto Frank, Anne's father.

Another round of rescues. Fire Country quickly became one of the most popular new shows of the season when it premiered in fall 2022, so fans can rest easy knowing that more episodes are coming soon.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter CBS has given full season orders to its three freshman dramas — “East New York,” “So Help Me Todd,” and “Fire Country.” “CBS is off to a tremendous start this season, said Kelly Kahl, president of CBS Entertainment. “We are thrilled to have the three most watched new series, each with their own unique settings, characters and storylines.  These dramas are elevating our already successful lineup, resonating with diverse audiences both on-air and on streaming, and continuing to grow each week.” “We thank the talented casts, executive producers and their incredible writing and production teams for bringing these shows to life,” Kahl added. “Additional kudos to our CBS programming teams for shepherding these series to success.  We are delighted to give them well deserved full season orders.”

EXCLUSIVE: Tia Napolitano (Cruel Summer) has joined CBS’ newly picked up drama series Fire Country as executive producer and showrunner. Her hire was already in the works when the network yesterday gave an official series order to the buzzy pilot, executive produced by and starring Max Thieriot.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“SEAL Team” star Max Thieriot has signed on for the lead role in the CBS drama pilot “Cal Fire,” Variety has learned.It was previously reported that Thieriot co-wrote the story for the series, which is inspired by his life growing up in northern California. He will also serve as an executive producer.

SEAL Team star Max Thieriot has closed a deal to headline CBS drama pilot Cal Fire, a project he co-wrote and executive produces.

EXCLUSIVE: The remarkable story of a Dutch woman who risked her life to shelter Anne Frank’s family from the Nazis for more than two years and then preserved Anne’s diary, is the subject of A Small Light, a National Geographic limited series ordered by Disney+. The project comes from Grey’s Anatomy alums Joan Rater and Tony Phelan, Susanna Fogel (The Flight Attendant), ABC Signature and Keshet Studios.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterCBS has given out a pilot order to a drama about convicts that fight wildfires in California.Titled “Cal Fire,” the potential series focuses on young convict Bode Donovan. Seeking redemption and a shortened sentence, he joins a firefighting program that returns him to his small Northern California hometown, where he and other inmates work alongside elite firefighters to extinguish massive blazes across the region.“SEAL Team” star Max Thieriot co-wrote the story for the pilot and serves as an executive producer. The show is inspired by his experiences growing in Northern California fire country.

EXCLUSIVE: CBS has given a pilot green light to Cal Fire, a drama from SEAL Team star Max Thieriot, Grey’s Anatomy alums Tony Phelan and Joan Rater, Jerry Bruckheimer Television and CBS Studios where the company is based. This is CBS’ second in-cycle drama pilot this season, joining a mother-and-son legal drama from Scott Prendergast and Dr. Phil McGraw.

NBC has announced that the freshman series Council of Dads has been canceled after just one season on the air.