Production is underway in Toronto on CBC series Shoot the Messenger, with producers Hungry Eyes Film & Television also revealing key cast.

The political thriller, which focuses on the relationships between crime reporters and the police, will star Elyse Levesque (Cedar Cove, SGU: Stargate Universe), Lucas Bryant (The Girl King, Haven), Lyriq Bent (Book of Negroes, Rookie Blue) and Alex Kingston (Bukowski, Doctor Who).

The series was co-created by Hungry Eyes’ Jennifer Holness and Sudz Sutherland, who both also write on the show. Other writers include Larry Bambrick, Ian Barr, James Battiston and Carol Hay. Victoria Woods and Holness produce for Hungry Eyes Film & Television, in association with CBC and ITV. Sutherland is the lead director on the series. Grant Harvey, T.W. Peacock and Dawn Wilkinson also serve on the directing team.

Other cast members for the series include Hannah Anderson (Lizzie Borden Took an Axe), Ari Cohen (Special Correspondents), Edie Inksetter (Hemlock Grove, Reign), Al Sapienza (Person of Interest, House of Cards) and Nicholas Campbell. Shoot the Messenger will also feature special appearances by Ed Robertson of the Barenaked Ladies, Raptors basketball player Jamaal Magloire and ex-NBA TV star Rick Fox.

Shoot the Messenger is currently set for a summer 2016 bow on CBC, with production slated to wrap by the end of November. The first season will include eight one-hour episodes.