Fox is making its next big reality swing — and it seems slightly familiar.
The network has handed out a series order to You the Jury, an unscripted show featuring legal cases being tried in front of a live TV audience.
What makes the news particularly interesting — odd, even — is that NBC ordered a reality show with essentially the same title over a year ago. Dick Wolf and Top Chef producers Magical Elves scored a series order for Law & Order: You the Jury in late 2015. Despite sharing a similar premise and name, the two projects have no connection. And sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that both shows were developed at roughly the same time, with Fox’s being produced by Renegade 83’s Jay Renfroe and David Garfinkle as well as Conrad Green. NBC’s show has since gone into hibernation with an uncertain future, not that the network has any shortage of unscripted and alternative programming these days. (The series is still listed as “upcoming” on Dick Wolf’s bio on the network’s press site.)
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Fox’s You the Jury, which premieres Friday, April 7, at 9 p.m., will be hosted by Fox News’ Jeanine Pirro (Justice With Judge Jeanine) and feature attorneys who have represented clients including Casey Anthony and the family of Trayvon Martin and give viewers on both coasts the opportunity to deliver the verdict in civil cases. It’s fitting that Pirro be the host considering her role in the series that inspired the current renaissance of true crime television. She was a prominent voice in HBO’s massive hit The Jinx. The show recounted the crimes and accused crimes of Robert Durst, culminating in real-life murder charges and his very public arrest.
The episode order for You The Jury was not immediately available. (Watch a trailer for the series, below.)
Here are the attorneys involved:
Charla Aldous
Founding partner of Aldous\Walker in Dallas, Aldous has tried more than 200 civil jury trials.
Jose Baez
Baez is a trial attorney who has represented clients in criminal and civil cases including the acquittal in the Casey Anthony murder trial; Nick Gordon in the death of Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina; and victims in the Dark Knight shooting tragedy in Aurora, Colorado.
Mike Cavalluzzi
A certified criminal law specialist through the California State Bar, Cavalluzzi has tried more than 150 cases. He joined the Public Defender’s Office and has defended clients in cases ranging from misdemeanor battery to homicide. As a member of the gay community, Cavalluzzi is also an outspoken advocate for LGBT rights.
Benjamin L. Crump
Crump has represented the families of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Robbie Tolan and nine of the black women who were the victims in the Holtzclaw Oklahoma City Police rape case in 2015.
Areva Martin
Martin founded L.A.-based civil rights firm Martin & Martin. Martin is frequently called upon to provide legal, political and social commentary to networks and syndicated television shows. She is a recurring host on The Doctors.
Joe Tacopina
Tacopina leads Manhattan-based Tacopina & Seigel. A former prosecutor, Tacopina has represented clients including Alex Rodriguez, Jay Z and Don Imus. Tacopina has provided commentary for CNN, NBC, ABC, CNBC, Fox News and MSNBC.
