TORONTO — Amid trade tension with the United States, television producer Erin Haskett believes Canadians are looking for homegrown heroes now more than ever.
So it's timely that two of her cop procedurals — Citytv’s “Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” and CBC's "Allegiance" — have racked up multiple Canadian Screen Award nominations.
"Canadians want to see our stories told and want to see characters that reflect ourselves back at us on television. I would say today even more, there's such a sense of wanting to see that reflected back as a country and as a people," Haskett said Wednesday, hours after nominations were announced.
The Vancouver-based president of Lark Productions suggested Canadians are "looking for solutions and heroes" given the state of the world, and crave stories they can relate to, especially amid "division here between our two countries."
“Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” got the most Screen Awards nominations overall with 20, including one for best drama series and acting nods for leads Kathleen Munroe and Aden Young. The first season of the Toronto-set "Law & Order" spinoff garnered a weekly average of 1.13 million viewers over 18, according to Citytv.
Haskett chalks up the show's success to it being "so specific to Toronto," from its landmarks to its stories. Each episode draws inspiration from real Toronto crime headlines, reimagining them as fictional investigations.
The show's executive producer Amy Cameron said it's been "liberating" for the crew to be able to portray Toronto as itself, after spending years pretending it's another city on other productions.
"We have all collectively spent a very long time trying to de-Canadianize what we're capturing on screen, and it's nice to not be thinking about that," she said.
"Allegiance" is up for eight awards, including best drama series and acting nods for leads Supinder Wraich and Enrico Colantoni. Wraich stars as a Punjabi rookie cop with Sikh roots in Surrey, B.C., where she grapples with a flawed justice system.
Haskett says Lark is working on getting "Law & Order Toronto" and "Allegiance" to air in the United States, noting it's available in territories around the world.
"It isn't just American television that travels, it's also our stories too," she said.
Among the film contenders for Screen Awards, the Winnipeg-set absurdist dramedy “Universal Language” leads with 13 nominations, including for best film, best directing and best original screenplay.
Director and co-writer Matthew Rankin believes the movie has resonated because of its "sincerity," adding that's in short supply in the world.
"The moment we're living in is one that's very harsh, it's very cruel, it is very much predicated on pitting people against each other. A lot of mistrust between people is being rewarded by our politics, our economics and our social media," said Rankin, reached by phone in Montreal.
"It's sad for me to say this, but I think in a way, it's something of a subversive act to make a gentle movie — which is not based on conflict and based on people being nice to each other — in our current moment in history."
"Universal Language” sees Rankin play himself alongside a Farsi- and French-speaking cast in a cross-cultural odyssey where Winnipeg, Quebec and Tehran converge as one.
Amid the current trade tussle between the U.S. and Canada, Rankin hopes an uptick in patriotism will spur Canadians to regard culture as "a public good, rather than a given."
"We can't allow our institutions to be destroyed and expect that there will still be culture. The program of certain politicians is the end of public institutions, and I think we've seen very vividly in the United States in the past few months how truly horrible that is and how that damages society as a whole," he said.
Rankin suggested the Canadian Screen Awards are "at the front lines of culture."
"A lot of amazing Canadian talent is on display, along with a lot of really great films that we should all know about a little bit more."
The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television announced nominees in 149 film, television, and digital media categories.
The Screen Awards will be handed out at five ceremonies in Toronto from May 30 to June 1, culminating in a gala hosted by comic Lisa Gilroy and set to stream live on CBC Gem.
“Universal Language” competes for the best film trophy against “The Apprentice,” “Darkest Miriam,” “Gamma Rays,” "Village Keeper” and “Who Do I Belong To.”
“Allegiance” and “Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent” will vie for best drama series against CBC’s “Bones of Crows,” Hollywood Suite’s “Potluck Ladies” and CTV’s ”Sight Unseen.”
Three TV series tied with 12 nominations: CTV’s sitcom “Children Ruin Everything,” CBC’s Indigenous historical drama “Bones of Crows” and family comedy “Run the Burbs.”
Other leading film nominees announced Wednesday include David Cronenberg’s “The Shrouds” with nine, and Sam McGlynn’s “Deaner '89” and Karen Chapman’s “Village Keeper,” which each nabbed seven.
Last year's Screen Awards were hosted by Canadian comic Mae Martin, who hosted a gala in front of an audience in Toronto, which was then whittled down to an hour-long special that aired hours after the event on CBC and CBC Gem.
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Online: academy.ca/nominees
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2025.
Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
