CTV Orders Fifth Season of Hit Original Drama SAVING HOPE

– Eighteen new episodes have been ordered for CTV's 2016/17 broadcast season from ICF Films and Entertainment One with production on Season 5 set to begin Spring 2016 in Toronto –

– New episodes from SAVING HOPE's current fourth season return in a new Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT timeslot beginning January 7 on CTV and the CTV GO app –

– Love is in the air for SAVING HOPE as Season 4 will conclude with a special two-hour finale event on Valentine's Day, Sunday, Feb. 14, beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV and the CTV GO app –

– New episodes of SAVING HOPE continue to be available the day before their broadcast premieres on CraveTV^TM, with the first three seasons also streaming now –

TORONTO, Dec. 17, 2015 /CNW/ - CTV confirmed today that is has ordered 18 new episodes for a fifth season of hit original series SAVING HOPE (@SavingHopeTV), from Ilana Frank's ICF Films and Entertainment One (eOne) for CTV's 2016/17 broadcast season. The most-watched Canadian drama this fall will begin production in Spring 2016 in Toronto and will see the return of series leads Erica Durance as Dr. Alex Reid and Michael Shanks as Dr. Charlie Harris. The Season 5 order comes as Season 4 episodes are set to return in a new Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT timeslot beginning Jan. 7 on CTV and the CTV GO app. The season will conclude with a special two-hour finale event on Valentine's Day, Sunday, Feb. 14, beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT, and the emotional and dramatic two-hours will culminate in a shocking moment viewers won't want to miss.

"SAVING HOPE continues to be a fan favourite and strong performer as an anchor of our hit Thursday night lineup and we have no doubt its strength will continue as the series heads into Season 5," said Mike Cosentino, Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks and CraveTV. "We look forward to another season of this proudly Canadian hit, with engaging stories told through our exceptional cast."

"Alongside eOne, we are thrilled to continue in our successful partnership with CTV who have long supported the show and have done an incredible job sharing our stories with fans across Canada. We are also delighted to broaden our relationship with ION on this fifth season, who have a strong belief in the series and its U.S. potential," said executive producer Ilana Frank, ICF Films.

The #1 Canadian drama series this fall, SAVING HOPE currently averages 1.3 million viewers in its Thursdays at 9 p.m. timeslot on CTV. Also the most-watched Canadian program among the key adult demos this fall, SAVING HOPE has seen a 16% increase in the key A18-34 demo, as well as a 63% increase in F18-34 over its third season.

Returning for Season 5 of SAVING HOPE is 2013 Canadian Screen Award nominee Erica Durance (SMALLVILLE) as Dr. Alex Reid; Michael Shanks (STARGATE SG-1) as Dr. Charlie Harris; 2013 Canadian Screen Award-winner Wendy Crewson (BEAUTY AND THE BEAST) as Dr. Dana Kinney; Benjamin Ayres (LESS THAN KIND) as Dr. Zach Miller; Julia Taylor Ross (ROOKIE BLUE) as Dr. Maggie Lin; Michelle Nolden (REPUBLIC OF DOYLE) as Dr. Dawn Bell; Huse Madhavji (CALL ME FITZ) as Dr. Shahir Hamza; and Kim Shaw (THE GOOD WIFE) as Dr. Cassie Williams.

SAVING HOPE is back in January with an all-new episode entitled "All Down the Line" (Thursday, Jan. 7 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CTV and CTV GO). With Dr. Dana Kinney (Wendy Crewson) back from Paris, Dr. Alex Reid (Erica Durance) enlists her help to save Lorenzo (Stefano DiMatteo, KILLJOYS), a hot-tempered chef suffering from oral cancer. Her concerns over her friend's own treatment (or lack there-of) quickly bubble to surface however, when their patient refuses medical attention in favour of pursuing the opening of his restaurant. Meanwhile, Dr. Charlie Harris (Michael Shanks) has his hands full juggling the spirit of a restless single mother, while working to save her life after a DIY treehouse accident. The episode also features guest star Stacey Farber (DEGRASSI: THE NEXT GENERATION) as Dr. Sydney Katz.

SAVING HOPE is produced by ICF Films with eOne in association with CTV, with the participation of the Canada Media Fund and the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit. ION Television in the U.S. has also renewed the series for a fifth season.

SAVING HOPE is executive produced by Ilana Frank and John Morayniss and co-executive produced by Linda Pope, Trish Williams, Noelle Carbone, and Patrick Tarr. Adam Pettle is Executive Producer and Showrunner. All distribution rights are handled by eOne.

For Bell Media, Carrie Paupst Shaughnessy is Production Executive, Drama, Independent Production; Tom Hastings is Director, Drama, Independent Production; Corrie Coe is Senior Vice-President, Independent Production; Mike Cosentino is Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks and CraveTV; Randy Lennox is President, Entertainment Production and Broadcasting.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

Twitter:
@CTV_PR
@CTV_Television
SAVING HOPE: @SavingHopeTV
Erica Durance: @ED_DURANCE
Michael Shanks: @MichaelShanks
Michelle Nolden: @noldenmichelle
Benjamin Ayres: @BenjaminAyres
Julia Taylor Ross: @juliataylorross
Huse Madhavji: @HuseM
Kim Shaw: @ItsMeKimShaw

Facebook:
Facebook.com/CTV
Facebook.com/SavingHopeTV

Instagram:
Instagram.com/BellMediaPR 
Instagram.com/CTV_Television 

About Entertainment One
Entertainment One Ltd. (LSE:ETO) is a leading international entertainment company that specializes in the acquisition, production and distribution of film and television content. The company's comprehensive network extends around the globe including Canada, the U.S., the UK, Ireland, Spain, Benelux, France, Germany, Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Through established Film and Television divisions, the company provides extensive expertise in film distribution, television and music production, family programming, merchandising and licensing, and digital content. Its current rights library is exploited across all media formats and includes more than 40,000 film and television titles, 4,500 hours of television programming and 45,000 music tracks.

About Bell Media Independent Production
Bell Media has commissioned some of Canada's most-watched and most-acclaimed original programming, working with the best Canadian independent producers in the country. Hit series commissioned by CTV include ratings success stories SAVING HOPE, MOTIVE, the record-breaking THE AMAZING RACE CANADA, and MASTERCHEF CANADA. CTV recently announced its first-ever serialized drama CARDINAL. Among the original scripted series on Bell Media pay and specialty channels are the internationally acclaimed ORPHAN BLACK, the smash-hit thriller BITTEN, Space's most-watched original series KILLJOYS, Bravo's most-watched original drama 19-2, award-winning dramedy SENSITIVE SKIN, upcoming cult comedy LETTERKENNY, and the new original drama FRONTIER. Bell Media specialty channels are also home to hit factual series HIGHWAY THRU HELL, COLD WATER COWBOYS, and CANADA'S WORST DRIVER, among others.

About CTV
CTV is Canada's #1 private broadcaster. Featuring a wide range of quality news, sports, information, and entertainment programming, CTV has been Canada's most-watched television network for the past 14 years in a row. CTV is a division of Bell Media, Canada's premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio, digital, and Out-of-Home. Bell Media is owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company. More information about CTV can be found on the network's website at CTV.ca.

Source: Numeris (BBM Canada), Sept. 22, 2014 – May 24, 2015, Sept. 21, 2015 – Dec. 5, 2015, final data.

SOURCE CTV

Christy Sullivan, CTV Networks, 416.384.3624 or [email protected]; Matthew Almeida, CTV Networks, 416.384.2629 or [email protected]