Republic of Doyle drives in a different direction in Season 4, beginning with a new broadcast night. The stalwart CBC drama, which has been slotted in Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET, moves to Sundays at 9 upon its Jan. 6 return.
Star Krystin Pellerin says she’s fine with the Newfoundland cop drama’s shift to the weekend, where it is paired with the cutthroat entrepreneurial hit Dragons’ Den.
“It’s a family night,” the bubbly blonde East Coaster tells TV Guide Canada during a recent stop in Toronto. “Everybody is off work and can sort of relax and finish off the week in a great way.”
The new night is just one of many changes the show has undergone. It starts with Pellerin’s character, Leslie Bennett, exploring new avenues. Up until this point, Leslie has been strutting the streets of St. John’s, solving crimes and coming face-to-face with her on-again, off-again, boyfriend, detective Jake Doyle (Allan Hawco). Not anymore.
“I was incredibly satisfied with the writing this year,” she stresses. “It’s taken the show to a whole new level with my character. I got the [first episode] script, and it’s going down a completely unexpected road. [It's a] surprising, really exciting storyline to play and a total departure from what we’ve been doing before.”
She’s right. Leslie doesn’t appear in Sunday’s return until the final moments, giving a hint as to where the character is headed, and it seems as though Leslie is content to get as far away from Jake as she can. After all, every time she gets involved with the wise-cracking private detective her heart is broken or she’s suspended from the force.
Republic of Doyle featured some high-profile homegrown and international guest stars in the past, such as Nicholas Campbell, Gordon Pinsent, Paul Gross and Russell Crowe, and that continues this year. Pellerin acknowledges there will be new and returning faces dropping by St. John’s, though she was loathe to name names.
We can. Angus MacFayden, most-recently seen on Chuck, Criminal Minds and Californication, appears in Sunday’s premiere as Gerald, Jake’s uncle and the brother-in-law to Malachy (Sean McGinley). Uncle Ger has flown in to search for his son, Rory, who has embroiled himself in gambling debts and armed robbery.
Sunday’s episode concludes the Season 3 cliffhanger, in which Des (Mark O’Brien) was dying after being caught in a shoot-out, and Jake’s beloved Pontiac GTO was destroyed. Des’ fate is revealed, as is that of the GTO.
Hold on, we’re in for a ride.
Republic of Doyle returns Sunday, Jan. 6, at 9 p.m. ET on CBC.
Will you be tuning in for Doyle‘s season return? Comment below.
