How ‘The Hunting Party’ Even Spooked Its Own Star

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NBC’s fresh series titled “The Hunting Party” blends multiple television genres into a single intriguing hour. It is essentially a drama that follows intelligence agents as they pursue serial killers who managed to break out from a covert government detention facility. Throughout its 10-episode first season, it navigates the boundary between episodic and ongoing mystery narratives.

When Jake Coburn and I, as game designers, first crossed paths, it was over our shared passion for creating something unique in the realm of procedural storytelling,” I recall. “We’re both drawn to grand, serialized enigmas, but we also craved the opportunity to tackle intriguing week-to-week cases.

The show centers around Melissa Roxburgh’s portrayal of an FBI special agent who has a past connection with several criminals. In each episode of the initial season, her character pursues a different murderer, which at times unnerves the actress herself. Although the writers have drawn influence from numerous true-crime cases – one instance in the first season being based on the Scott Peterson case – they aim to steer clear from America’s alarmingly vast pool of real-life criminal masterminds. According to Coburn, during a recent THR Frontrunners panel, there are indeed some killers in the first season that they feel are similar to certain notorious individuals, but they enjoy crafting episodes where the inspiration remains hidden.

Following her successful four-season stint on NBC/Netflix’s hit series Manifest, Roxburgh finds a personal connection with her new role. During her college days, she dabbled in criminal psychology, fueled by her fascination with serial killer shows. “I was so engrossed in these shows that by the time I reached college, I thought it would be incredibly exciting to become a criminal profiler,” Roxburgh recalls. “But then I discovered that in real life, you have to engage with the actual criminals – which wasn’t something I was keen on. So, I opted for the fictional take on the profession instead.

Roxburgh shares a common interest with many others in delving into serial-killer narratives. Each year, this intrigue results in countless hours of both scripted and unscripted content dedicated to these subjects. However, Bailey and Coburn are less concerned about understanding the root causes of this obsession and more focused on finding innovative ways to present the material in a manner that will captivate audiences who have already been exposed to numerous works within the genre.

Bailey mentions that they avoid diagnosing such cases since it could imply self-diagnosis quite frequently. The nature of a serial killer’s psychology is puzzling, and there’s an emphasis on delving into what might be perceived as the most frightening aspects.

During the entire conversation, one specific point that was hinted at caused Roxburgh quite a fright. (The Hunting Party, featuring Patrick Sabongui, Sara Garcia, Josh McKenzie, and Nick Wechsler, is broadcast on NBC every Monday, with episodes becoming available on Peacock afterwards.)

Please take a moment to watch the remainder of this panel discussion, as it’s featured in the video above. Today’s episode of THR Frontrunners is proudly brought to you by NBCUniversal.

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2025-02-10 23:25