The new David E. Kelley Peacock series, The Calling, offers a unique twist on the common police procedural. In the current cultural landscape, where discussions about law and order have turned to heated arguments, The Calling goes in a surprising direction toward human compassion and empathy. The series follows the deeply spiritual, Jewish detective Avraham Avraham (known by most as Avi, and played be Jeff Wilbusch) as he works with his new partner Janine Harris (Juliana Canfield) to search for a missing teenager.

Working mostly in the NYPD office to support Avi behind the scenes are Captain Kathleen Davies (Karen Robinson) and Detective Earl Malzone (Michael Mosley), two dedicated officers of the law with very different personalities. Davies is the boss, someone who admires and respects the police under her but is dedicated to keeping things above-board and without reproach in the contemporary political climate.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
Robinson, a longtime character actor (Lars and the Real Girl, Owning Mahowny) who found well-deserved acclaim as a fan-favorite character in Schitt’s Creek, really shines here as the tough but sympathetic Captain. Mosley, another memorable actor who has popped up in some of the most acclaimed TV series of the past couple decades (Scrubs, Pan Am, Longmire, Ozark, Criminal Minds), is delightful as the most affable and humorous character in The Calling. The two actors spoke to MovieWeb about the show.

Michael Mosley and Karen Robinson on Joining The Calling

NBCUniversal

“When you receive an audition request, and you see that the words are written by David Kelley, that’s always a good thing,” laughed Robinson, who explained how she jumped at the opportunity to work with Kelley, the man behind Big Little Lies, Ally McBeal, and so many more great TV shows. “It’s only ever happened to me once, this one time. That name already brings with it all kinds of promises of great gifts, and so that definitely pulled me in, and then when I read the character, you know what I loved about her? I loved that she didn’t have to say very much in order to get her point across, and I’m always happy when I have less to say. I love that about her. I love that she was succinct and direct, and I could use more of that as Karen Robinson.”

Related: Exclusive: The Calling Executive Producers on Peacock’s New David E. Kelley Show

“Yeah, same,” added Mosley, “with both Kelley and Barry Levinson [who directed episodes of The Calling]. When I saw that, and then I heard it’s shooting in New York in the summer in Brooklyn, I thought that sounded lovely. I think that it was also fun with this Earl character. I don’t think we all knew kind of who he was at the beginning, and I think that was kind of fun to get to explore that with the writers and the team. We kind of figured out towards the end kind of who he was.”

Mosley was also happy to work with Robinson, and some of their best scenes in The Calling are with each other as they help Avi with the season-long case of the missing boy, simultaneously fascinated and frustrated by the great detective. “Karen was great,” said Mosley. “Karen is no joke, like when we’re in that little interrogation room, and maybe I went on a little too long about something, she can just give me that look and her character can stop you. She’ll start to give you the look, and you’ll be like, ‘Yeah, shut up, okay. Stop talking, will do.'”

The Calling Has a Different Kind of Detective

NBCUniversal

Besides both having a lot of fun navigating Kelley’s well-written world, Robinson and Mosley were happy to be in a different kind of police show, one where social justice and morality are just as important to law enforcement as cuffing the criminal and looking cool doing it. Avraham is a unique character in this genre; while he’s the kind of maverick loner we often see in cop shows, his renegade style is much more compassionate and centered on human dignity. Rather than slamming a suspect’s head into a desk, he’ll ask very personal questions; instead of antagonistically interrogating someone, he senses their emotions and taps on his own innate sense of spirituality to locate their humanity.

“I think in the genre of lead detectives that we’ve become accustomed to, he is quite atypical,” said Robinson, “because he sees all of these people as human beings first, as wives and husbands and parents and, you know, whatever they do for a living. Because he sees that first, he invites you to do that also. And I think in that way, he’s absolutely invaluable to this squad that my character Kathleen Davies has surrounded herself with. He is quite extraordinary in his insightfulness. And I think that we just all trust him with that. As infuriating as Avi can be, he’s also very successful with it. It bears fruit.”

Related: Best International Crime Dramas From 2021

“I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything like Avraham,” added Mosley. “I haven’t seen anything like him. I didn’t even know what it was really, as I was reading it. But then seeing Jeff [Wilbusch] work, and then seeing the final cut and seeing what he’s done with the character. I just think that it’s a perfect match between an actor and a character. I think he’s really gotten it. He’s fascinating.”

Karen Robinson on Playing the Police in 2022

NBCUniversal

Wilbusch is very well melded with the character, who fuses the morality of Judaism and the ethics of law enforcement into a different kind of character (and The Calling is a different kind of show). But Robinson and Mosley are wonderful as well in their more traditional characters, a strong, focused police captain and a sanguine, fun, but intelligent detective. Portraying law enforcement in 2022 brings with it its own set of baggage, though, considering the aforementioned polemics for and against police officers around the world, and especially in America. It was an issue that Robinson was attuned to.

“I find that the attention to detail in the writing of the show handles that big political question with such candor and such sensitivity, that it actually put me in a place where I could ask more questions, rather than believe that I had all the answers,” said Robinson. “That, to me, was extremely useful.” Without telling the viewer how to think or pandering to any one ideology, The Calling details the lives of NYPD officers gracefully, showcasing personalities we don’t often see in the usual TV series about detectives. The result is a carefully unfolding character study that’s as humanistic as it is suspenseful.

The Calling from David E. Kelley premieres on Thursday, November 10th on Peacock. All eight episodes will drop at once.