Here's Everything We Can Tell You About the Suits Spinoff, Pearson
Posted on 1/30/19
Pearson -- the Suits spinoff starring Gina Torres as her fan favorite character Jessica Pearson -- unveiled its first trailer Tuesday, as the cast and producers attended the winter press tour of the Television Critics Association in Pasadena, CA.
Torres, who is an executive producer on the project (and who, by the way, looked positively stunning in her winter-white ensemble -- Jessica would approve!), shared her passion for the spinoff, and Suits creator Aaron Korsh and Pearson showrunner Daniel Arkin detailed what viewers can expect from Jessica Pearson as she adjusts to her new world of the Chicago Mayor’s office. Cast memebers Bethany Joy Lenz, Eli Goree, Chantel Riley, Isabel Arraiza, and Simon Kassianides also attended the panel.
Here’s everything we can tell you about Pearson so far...
Pearson ‘has Suits DNA’ but will be more raw
“Jessica is the link between Suits and Pearson,” said Arkin, longtime Suits writer and Pearson boss. “It has Suits DNA but we wanted the show’s concept to be grittier, raw, more real, showing more facets of her personality and life.” Newly appointed as Chicago Mayor Bobby Novak’s (Morgan Spector) right-hand fixer, Jessica is quickly immersed in the down-and-dirty political world of the Windy City and the tone of Pearson will reflect that with a gritty, noir quality.
Fierce with a conscience
When asked about Jessica's moral compass while unleashed in this corrupt new world, Korsh, Arkin, Torres all emphasized that, yes, Jessica is still a killer, but you should not expect her to emerge as an antihero. "You will always be on her side," Korsh promised. "You may not like the choices she makes, but you will always root for her."
You will see new sides to the character
When Jessica left Pearson Specter Litt, she had been inspired by her pro bono work, yearning to get back to the core of why she became a lawyer in the first place. Now in Chicago, Jessica’s stripped of her license and will often find herself behind the 8-ball. According to Torres, viewers can expect, “a fully fleshed out woman and what it costs her to be at the top of her game… She was always in service to the firm but now she’s in service of her own life. What does that look like?”
She needs to fit in with her work family and her actual family
In Suits, Jessica was the boss (and everyone had her back), but now she’s a fish out of water. She’s also trying to reconnect with Chicago-based family, including her cousin Angela (Riley), who is suspicious of Jessica’s sudden altruism. "Jessica has to earn her family," Torres explained. "These are completely different people. It's a completely different world. She doesn't know them. They don't know her. They don't know if they trust me." Torres also confirmed that Jeff Malone (DB Woodside) is still Jessica's boyfriend when we pick up with them in Chicago.
Once a fashionista, always a fashionista
Sure, her look may be more subdued to fit in with the new surroundings (as Korsh put it, Jessica is going from the world of “high-rise corporate law to ground-floor Chicago politics” -- and the vibe of the show will reflect that), but Jessica is still Jessica. Suits costume designer Jolie Andreatta is evolving Jessica’s look for the Windy City and you can expect it to be fabulous -- or as Riley put it, viewers will want every piece of Jessica’s clothing! Some things never change...
See photos of the Pearson cast and creatives from the TCA Winter 2019 Press Tour below!
