Take Two

Apparently ABC likes the look of Rhode Island. A year after filming scenes incorporated into episodes of the abysmal and quickly canceled “Eastwick,” the network is returning next month to try again. This time ABC TV will start filming a pilot for a new procedural drama called “Body of Evidence.” If the show sounds familiar (you may have just felt a cold shudder of dread), that’s because Madonna made a cheesy-bad* movie by the same name, a 1993 thriller also starring Willem Dafoe notable for its ridiculous plot, awful acting and determination to show as much of Madonna as possible and still pull an R rating.

According to the press release, this “Body of Evidence” centers on “a brilliant and tenacious female medical examiner, Megan Hunt. Her background as a neurosurgeon gives her a unique and refreshing crime-solving perspective, one that often puts her at odds with just about everyone who crosses her path.” A trade publication called it “a female postmortem ‘House.’”

So the dead bodies keep piling up on television. Viewers can’t get enough of them. Pretty soon we’ll be tuning into “Cadaver Idol,” “Dancing with the Stiffs” and “Survivor (Not).” Luckily for the producers, March in Rhode Island can look like a morgue, so the setting might match the body count.

The folks at the R.I. Film & TV Office are happy with the news, especially on the heels of Governor Carcieri’s proposal to eliminate the state’s motion picture tax credit in the next budget. While it’s difficult to assess precisely whether all that lost income tax has been worth luring the likes of Wesley Snipes and Richard Gere to Little Rhody, it’s clear that other states, including our northeast neighbor, are pulling out all the stops to bring Hollywood east. Last spring Rhode Island lawmakers were campaigning to build a movie empire in Hopkinton. Now it’s move over RHODYWOOD, make way for MASSAWOOD. Ah, well. That’s show biz.

What would be a good name for a forensics-based show set in Rhode Island?

*As opposed to cheesy-good, like the old “Batman” TV show or most wine-tasting parties.