Chicago Fire ended its eleventh season with a finale that could have disastrous consequences, but Fire going out for now doesn’t mean that primetime is cooling down for the summer on NBC. LA Fire & Rescue will soon premiere as docuseries about the real-life first responder heroes of Los Angeles County. Like the One Chicago series, LA Fire & Rescue hails from Dick Wolf’s Wolf Entertainment production company, and executive producer Rasha Drachkovitch opened up to CinemaBlend about why the new show would be a great fit for Chicago Fire fans.
LA Fire & Rescue gained unprecedented access to the Los Angeles County Fire Department to film a docuseries that follows first responders on real and dangerous calls. There’s no shortage of emergencies in a county made up of 2,300 square miles with millions of residents across 59 cities and all kinds of terrain, making it a very different place for fighting fires than the Windy City. Still, when I asked the executive producer why Chicago Fans should want to check out LA Fire & Rescue, Rasha Drachkovitch explained:
They're gonna find similar storylines that are so engaging in scripted television. You're gonna see it, but this time for real. You're gonna see real-life bonds form, relationships form, challenges, emotions of fear, humor. Things that writers can punch up and actors can act out, but when you see them for real, I think it takes on an even more powerful experience for a viewer because they know that this isn't staged and they know that, thank God we have people like this, because in our worst days, we hope that the firefighters of LA Fire & Rescue will be there. I think that's compelling television. It's informative, it's entertaining, and in many cases, just inspiring.
Chicago Fire fans shouldn’t expect to see LA Fire & Rescue resolve any of the Season 11 finale cliffhangers (available for rewatch via Peacock Premium subscription) or showcase Stella Kidd as a lieutenant, but the real-life storylines of the docuseries will have striking similarities to what the NBC scripted drama has done in primetime for more than a decade. In fact, the new series will even incorporate a deep bond between first responders like what Chicago Fire features in Firehouse 51. After I asked how true to life the sense of community and family really is among firefighters, Rasha Drachkovitch said:
It's really true to life! When we were casting the series, we were looking for – just to call it what it is – Dick Wolf characters. The heroic fire chief, the nervous rookie, the band of brothers and sisters who come to work every day and risk their lives. The heroes. And so, in our casting, from 3000 applicants or available firefighters to choose from, because the agency is so huge, we had to kind of narrow it down to the cast that you see in the series today. It was great.
What diehard Chicago Fire fan could read the words “heroic fire chief” and not think of Wallace Boden?! Even though LA Fire & Rescue will of course be filled with real people rather than fictional characters portrayed by actors, it seems that viewers can count on the same kinds of brave individuals with strong bonds that can be found across the nine-show Dick Wolf scripted TV universe. Rasha Drachkovitch went on to give an example of a hero who will be showcased on the new series:
The 35-year veteran fire chief at Station 16 in Watts, his name is Dan Olivas, and he's straight out of a Dick Wolf Chicago Fire episode. He's a father figure to the station, and he's about to retire, but we were fortunate to track his son, Jeff Olivas, who just entered the academy in hopes to become a firefighter and following in his father's footsteps to someday climb to become a legendary captain like his dad. So we went to the graduation ceremony, which is, again, straight out of a scripted series. There was a bagpipe playing and the saluting… It's a transitionary dramatic moment, so that is something that I'm really excited for our viewers to see.
Fortunately, potential viewers don’t have too much longer to wait to see what the executive producer previewed to CinemaBlend. LA Fire & Rescue will premiere on Wednesday, June 21 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. In a fun twist, that placement in the schedule is just one hour off from Chicago Fire’s longtime 9 p.m. ET slot on Wednesdays, when the drama isn’t on hiatus.
Be sure to tune into the premiere to see a real-life version of the crises and heroics that regularly happen fictionally on Fire! For now, check out the promo for a taste of what's on the way:
As the weather heats up and broadcast networks finish up their finales, you can also find some new and returning viewing options for the summer on our 2023 TV premiere schedule. The summer TV lineup usually has plenty of unscripted offerings, and there’s no shortage this year on top of LA Fire & Rescue.
