You may know David Tennant as Doctor Who or from Jessica Jones, but did you know he was cast as a lawyer who can’t practise law due to panic attacks, so he coaches people to represent themselves? Well, if the answer is no, I do not blame you. Unless you are a big David Tennant fan this one might of missed your radar.
The pilot was written by Andrew Leeds and David Lampson, directed by David Semel and filmed in late 2009. The pilot was completed but never officially aired on NBC; however, it was leaked online and can be watched.
The pilot follows Mabel Howard, a private-school bus driver fighting a wrongful-termination case, with Rex trying to help her while dealing with his own anxiety. The show mixes legal drama and comedy, with Rex being very confident and smart as a lawyer while also completely falling apart when it comes to his own problems. It’s a cool take on a law show where his clients have to represent themselves in court.
The supporting cast is also pretty stacked, with Jerry O’Connell (Sliders) as fellow lawyer Bruce Sweet, Abigail Spencer (Timeless, Rectify) as Rex’s fiancée Lindsey, Jeffrey Tambor (Arrested Development) as his psychiatrist and Jane Curtin (3rd Rock from the Sun, Saturday Night Live) as his mother. For a show that never made it past the pilot, they put together a strong cast.
David Tennant is fantastic as Rex, and it was good to see him in a comedy role rather than other roles he’d done at the time that just happened to be funny. The mix of comedy and drama would have set the show apart from other legal shows. I liked how one minute he was in a big dramatic moment, and the next he had flopped onto a staircase, panicking.
The show feels like a law show version of House, with two characters who are very smart and have strong personalities, but whose personal lives are a complete mess.
If you are able to track it down, it’s worth watching and thinking about what could have been. I really enjoyed it, David played a man dealing with anxiety well, and the show had enough funny bits to be an enjoyable time.
David Tennant has so many hard core fans that this leaked ploit has gained a cult following even with Rex is Not Your TV Show as by M.L. Zambrana worte a full book over 200 pages about the show called rex is not your lawer An Unauthorized, Unofficial Look at the NBC-TV Pilot “Rex Is Not Your Lawyer i gave never seen this happen to a unsold pilot before. its one of the few shows to never air that has a fan base. David tennant’s name brings fans that will follow him anywhere even to a leaked show.
I do not know why NBC did not pick up the show but i think it would of been a good new take on a count show and the comedy format and with a star like Tennant i can see it would of made it big.
The episode is worth tracking down, if only for some laughs and to think of what could have been.
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