Production Begins on Season 5 of CTV’s Hit Original Drama SAVING HOPE

TORONTO (April 18, 2016) – CTV announced today, in association with Ilana Frank’s ICF Films and Entertainment One (eOne), that production is underway on Season 5 of original drama SAVING HOPE. Eighteen episodes will shoot on location in Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area until November 2016, bringing the hit series to 85 episodes in total since its 2012 debut. SAVING HOPE’s fifth season is set to air as part of CTV’s 2016/17 broadcast season, and stars Erica Durance as Dr. Alex Reid. A Best Dramatic Series nominee and finalist for the Golden Screen Award for most-watched Canadian drama at the 2016 Canadian Screen Awards, all past seasons of SAVING HOPE are streaming now on CraveTV™. The most-watched Canadian drama series among the key demos this broadcast year to date, Season 4 of SAVING HOPE averaged 1.3 million viewers on CTV. A Top 30 program among the key A18-34 demo, SAVING HOPE saw a 17% increase in the demo, as well as a 67% increase in F18-34 over Season 3. SAVING HOPE’s emotional and gripping special two-hour Season 4 finale saw Dr. Charlie Harris (Michael Shanks) undergo brain surgery to remove an aggressive tumour, which could also affect his ghost-seeing abilities. Following Charlie’s surgery and a successful recovery, the finale culminated with a vengeful Tom Crenshaw (Travis Milne, ROOKIE BLUE) showing up at the Hope Zion Hospital Fellowship Awards and firing a shot at Alex and Charlie. Picking up in the aftermath of the heart-stopping finale which ended in a cliffhanger, Season 5 of SAVING HOPE returns with the Hope Zion staff thrust into turmoil. Following her promise to stay away from Charlie if he survived his surgery, Alex faces a big decision while her fellow doctors deal with new challenges as changes come to Hope Zion that will not only affect the livelihood of the hospital, but also its doctors and everything they hold dear. “With fans still reeling from last season’s finale, we’re looking forward to heading back to Hope Zion Hospital and delivering another season of this addictive drama to our viewers,” said Corrie Coe, Senior Vice-President, Independent Production, Bell Media. “Audiences have embraced this series and its exceptional ensemble cast for the past four seasons and with our production partners ICF Films and eOne again at the helm, this is sure to be another outstanding season.” Joining the cast for Season 5 in a recurring role is Calgary-born actor Jarod Joseph (THE 100, MISTRESSES). The young, charming, and philosophical radiologist Dr. Emanuel Palmer brings a laissez-faire attitude to Hope Zion, as well as a propensity for challenging his medical colleagues with his unique insights. Directing this season are series stars Erica Durance and Michael Shanks, as well as David Wellington (BITTEN), Peter Stebbings (THE LISTENER), Kelly Makin (VIKINGS), Gregory Smith (ARROW), Steve DiMarco (ROOKIE BLUE), and James Genn (CALL ME FITZ). SAVING HOPE stars Canadian Screen Award nominee Erica Durance (SMALLVILLE) as Dr. Alex Reid; Michael Shanks (STARGATE SG-1) as Dr. Charlie Harris; Canadian Screen Award-winner and 2016 Earle Grey Award recipient Wendy Crewson (Room) as Dr. Dana Kinney; Benjamin Ayres (BITTEN) as Dr. Zach Miller; Canadian Screen Award nominee Julia Taylor Ross (GOTHAM) as Dr. Maggie Lin; Canadian Screen Award-winner Michelle Nolden (Prisoner X) as Dr. Dawn Bell; Huse Madhavji (CALL ME FITZ) as Dr. Shahir Hamza; Kim Shaw (THE GOOD WIFE) as Dr. Cassie Williams, and Dejan Loyola (THE 100) as Dr. Dev Sekara. 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. SAVING HOPE airs on ION Television in the U.S., which also renewed the series for a fifth season. The series is executive produced by Ilana Frank, John Morayniss, and Linda Pope, and co-executive produced by Noelle Carbone, Patrick Tarr, and Jocelyn Hamilton. Adam Pettle is Executive Producer and Showrunner. All distribution rights are handled by eOne. For Bell Media, Lisa Gotlieb is Coordinator, Independent Production; Kathleen Meek 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; and Randy Lennox is President, Entertainment Production and Broadcasting.   For more information, please contact: Sue Baldaro, Unit Publicist, 647.802.0739 or sue.baldaro@sympatico.ca