In fact, the porn lawyer character, named “Clyde,” is based on real-life porn attorney Clyde DeWitt. A production company spent nearly a month at the small law firm Cristalli and Saggese, filming the pilot and interviewing staff members as well as lawyers including DeWitt himself.
“The idea of a show about Mike Cristalli and Marc Saggese had been cooking for a long time,” DeWitt told XBIZ.
“They came in here and put in special lighting and everything and shot a reality pilot. I don’t know what happened, but somehow it turned into a scripted drama that CBS picked up. Since I am not in the high-profile criminal defense business, I was surprised that they wrote my character into it.”
When asked if he thinks the show can truly capture what goes on behind closed doors of a porn attorney, DeWitt said viewers will have to watch and see.
“I don’t know whether they are going to try,” DeWitt said. “The writers have interviewed me extensively since they shot the pilot, so we’ll see.”
In the first episode, DeWitt says the plot focuses on a murder case that Cristalli and Saggese’s characters, played by Jim Belushi and Jerry O’Connell, are defending.
In a side plot, “Clyde” the porn lawyer, complete with his hat and gray hair, shows up somewhere with some porn star, DeWitt says.
“It looks like a very well-written show with an excellent cast and some sex appeal,” DeWitt said. “It will be on opposite “Law and Order – Los Angeles”, which is in the slot after “SVU” on NBC, so “The Defenders” will have some tough competition.
DeWitt says if the series, survives, he expects to be a continuing sub-plot within the show.
To see “The Defenders” trailer, click here.
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