"Shield" Creator Working on Chicago Cop Drama

Show is "mostly about ... how cops are affected/stymied/supported by local political elements"

By STEVEN BRYANT

Updated 7:55 PM CDT, Mon, Aug 10, 2009

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Crime keeps paying for Shawn Ryan.

Ryan, the Rockford, Ill., native behind hit cop drama "The Shield," has a new TV project in the works -- and it's all about the police and politics of the Windy City.

Fox has purchased the pilot for "Ridealong," a new drama series from Ryan. While there's no filming date set, if the show goes forward, it'll be shot entirely in Chicago.

"I'd like this show to be my love letter to Chicago," said Ryan to the Trib.

Ryan also told Hollywood insider rag Variety that, in his opinion, "Chicago has become the center of the universe: It's the place that Barack Obama comes from, it's a candidate to host the Olympics, and it's where Oprah dispels her wisdom."

Wisdom? She's not an oracle, dude.

The central lead character will be a Polish-American cop who plays up his heritage. The show is "mostly about cops, but we will deal with how cops are affected/stymied/supported by local political elements," Ryan said. "Ridealong" will also feature a "young, female chief of police and her attempts to navigate Chicago politics."

In police parlance, a "ridealong" refers to members of the press or other private citizens accompanying police on patrols.

According to Ryan, the drama will be shot mostly in cop cars, which serve as on-the-go offices for patrolmen.

"It will be part cop procedural, part buddy comedy, part political thriller, part undercover drama ... or it will just be a huge mess," he said. "But I'm going to try to make it good."