''Crossing Lines'' is an internationally co-produced

crime drama Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

television series created and executive produced by Edward Allen Bernero and Rola Bauer. The series premiered on June 9, 2013, at the Festival de Télévision de Monte-Carlo. Its first television broadcast was in Italy on June 14, 2013, on Rai 2, and it premiered in the United States on NBC on June 23, 2013. The show was renewed for a second season by

TF1 TF1 (; standing for ''Télévision Française 1'') is a French commercial television network owned by TF1 Group, controlled by the Bouygues conglomerate. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network. TF1 is part ...

, and was released in its entirety on

Amazon Prime Amazon Prime (styled as prime) is a paid subscription service of Amazon which is available in many countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services inclu ...

Instant Video in the United Kingdom on August 15, 2014.

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

carried the series' first two seasons. On 20 February 2015, the show was renewed for a third season, which went to air on September 15, 2015.

Plot

Former

New York Police Department The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

officer Carl Hickman's life has fallen apart after he was injured on the job; he has become addicted to morphine and works as a garbage collector at a carnival in the Netherlands. He is recruited to join the

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC) is an intergovernmental organization and International court, international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute ...

's special crime unit (a fictional unit). Based in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, it investigates a variety of crimes that cross international boundaries. The unit includes an anti–organized crime expert, a covert specialist from Italy, a technical specialist from Germany, a crimes analyst, a human-trafficking specialist from France and a weapons specialist and tactical expert from Northern Ireland.

Cast

Main

* William Fichtner as Carlton "Carl" Hickman (seasons 1–2), Detective First Grade,

NYPD The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...

from the United States * Marc Lavoine as Louis Daniel (seasons 1–2), Major, Direction Centrale de la Police Judiciaire /

from France * Gabriella Pession as Eva Vittoria (seasons 1–2), Sovrintendente (Sergeant), Nucleo Operativo Centrale di Sicurezza / Sergeant,

Europol Europol, officially the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, is the law enforcement agency of the European Union (EU). Established in 1998, it is based in The Hague, Netherlands, and serves as the central hub for coordinating c ...

from Italy * Richard Flood as Tommy McConnell (seasons 1–2), Detective,

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ; Ulster-Scots: '), is the police service responsible for law enforcement and the prevention of crime within Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) after it ...

from the United Kingdom * Tom Wlaschiha as Sebastian Berger, Kommissar (Detective), Berliner Polizei from Germany *

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (17 July 1935 – 20 June 2024) was a Canadian actor. With a career spanning six decades, he received List of awards and nominations received by Donald Sutherland, numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award ...

as Michel Dorn,

from Netherlands * Moon Dailly as Anne-Marie San (season 1), O.P.J. (Detective), Police Nationale from France *

Genevieve O'Reilly Genevieve O'Reilly (born 6 January 1977) is an Irish-born Australian actress. She is best known for portraying Mon Mothma in the '' Star Wars'' franchise beginning with ''Revenge of the Sith'' (2005), a role which earned her a Saturn Award nom ...

as Sienna Pride (pilot only), Police Inspector,

Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's London boroughs, 32 boroughs. Its name derives from the location of the original ...

from the United Kingdom * Lara Rossi as Arabela Seeger (guest season 1; main seasons 2–3), Inspecteur, Regiokorps Rotterdam Rijnmond from Netherlands * Goran Visnjic as Marco Constante (season 3), Police Inspector, Milan from Italy * Elizabeth Mitchell as Carine Strand (season 3), Inspector, Senior Investigator of the International Criminal Court; former

Chicago Police Department The Chicago Police Department (CPD) is the primary law enforcement agency of the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, under the jurisdiction of the Chicago City Council. It is the second-largest Law enforcement in the United States#Local, ...

officer from the United States *

Naomi Battrick Naomi Faye Battrick (born 11 April 1991) is an English actress. Career Battrick was born in Kettering, Northamptonshire. Her first television appearance was in a guest role on ''The Bill'' as Miranda Roscoe. She subsequently won the part of 15- ...

as Ellie Delfont-Bogard (season 3), a recent forensic psychologist graduate, Metropolitan Police Service from the United Kingdom * Stuart Martin as Luke Wilkinson (season 3), Inspector, Metropolitan Police Service from the United Kingdom

Recurring

* Elsa Mollien as Rebecca Daniel (seasons 1–2),

from France * Klára Issová as Shari (seasons 1–2), a carnival worker from Netherlands * Karel Roden as Lev Marianski (seasons 1–2), a Russian crime figure *

Kim Coates Kim Frederick Coates (born February 21, 1958) is a Canadian-American actor who has worked in both Canadian and American films and television series. He has worked on Broadway portraying Stanley Kowalski in ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' and in th ...

as Phillip Genovese (seasons 1–2), a convicted criminal and stalker from the United States * Rossif Sutherland as Moreau (seasons 1–2), Lieutenant,

Prefecture of Police of Paris The Paris Police Prefecture ( ), officially the Police Prefecture (), is the unit of the French Minister of the Interior (France), Ministry of the Interior that provides police, emergency services, and various administrative services to the po ...

from France * Florentine Lahme as Kathrin Eichholtz (seasons 1–2), Hauptkommissarin, Berliner Polizei from Germany * Marcel Iureș as Alexander Dimitrov (seasons 1–2), a gangland boss and drug dealer from Romania * Ray Stevenson as Miles Lennon (season 2), Police Superintendent,

from the United Kingdom * Carrie-Anne Moss as Amanda Andrews (season 2), Detective,

from the United States *

Sophia Myles Sophia Myles () is an English actress. She is best known in film for portraying Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward in Thunderbirds (2004 film), ''Thunderbirds'' (2004), Isolde in ''Tristan & Isolde (film), Tristan & Isolde'' (2006), Darcy in ''Transfo ...

as Dr. Anna Clarke (season 2), a doctor from the United Kingdom * Michelle Fairley as Sophie Baines (season 3), Prosecutor,

from the United Kingdom

Production

''Crossing Lines'' was co-commissioned by France's

and Sony for its AXN network of channels. This is

Tandem Tandem, or in tandem, is an arrangement in which two or more animals, machines, or people are lined up one behind another, all facing in the same direction. ''Tandem'' can also be used more generally to refer to any group of persons or objects w ...

's first one-hour drama series, having previously produced miniseries, as well as its first project since being acquired by

StudioCanal StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., and Canal+ Production and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film & television production and distribution company which is a ...

in 2012. The first season was filmed in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, with filming ending in February 2013. Locations in Prague were used for parts of Paris, Italy, the Netherlands, Berlin and Vienna. Audio post-production was done by SoundSquare in Prague while video post-production work was done by Universal Production Partners. Approximately €10 million was spent in the Czech Republic on the production of the first season. Bernero said that the show would "feel familiar and help viewers find their orientation, but the European locations will make it feel fresh and very new". Parts of the third season were also filmed in Opatija, Croatia, at Hotel Imperial.

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2013)

Season 2 (2014)

Season 3 (2015)

Release and broadcast

The series premiered on June 9, 2013, at the screening for the Opening Ceremonies of the 53rd edition of the Festival de Télévision de Monte-Carlo, the first time the festival opened with a television series. Its first television broadcast was in Italy on June 14, 2013, on the public broadcaster's channel Rai 2. ''Crossing Lines'' was premiered in the United States on NBC on June 23, 2013. In the United Kingdom, the series was released on the LoveFilm platform on October 25, 2013. The show was renewed for a 12-episode second season by

, and was released on

Amazon Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

in the UK on August 15, 2014, with all seasons available on the platform as of 2019. NBC did not broadcast the show after the first season. Canada's

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

aired second-season episodes during late-night hours.

carried the series' first two seasons, and announced the debut of season three on February 19, 2015. On 20 February 2015, the show was renewed for a 12-episode third season, which began airing on September 15, 2015.

Reception

Tom Conroy of '' Media Life Magazine'' found the European flavour of the show, seen in such things as travelling by train to various cities, to be a refreshing change from the norm of American shows. He felt that Donald Sutherland was cast purely for the name-recognition factor and that he was given some lines in which he philosophically talks to pigeons as a means of justifying the cost of casting him. Overall, Conroy found it an "unimaginative procedural" that, despite its title, "generally colors within the lines". David Wiegand of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'' also found the location to be what sets ''Crossing Lines'' apart. He felt the presence of Donald Sutherland was a benefit to the show. Joanne Ostrow of Heritage Newspapers felt the show to be a "contrivance for foreign sales more than a serious drama". ''Crossing Lines'' has been criticised as misrepresenting the International Criminal Court's nature and purpose, which, in reality, only has jurisdiction over

crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...

war crimes A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hos ...

and

genocide Genocide is violence that targets individuals because of their membership of a group and aims at the destruction of a people. Raphael Lemkin, who first coined the term, defined genocide as "the destruction of a nation or of an ethnic group" by ...

. The International Criminal Court lacks an organization comparable to the special crime unit, and has no police force of its own. Kevin Jon Heller, Associate Professor & Reader in international criminal law at the University of Melbourne, noted the show creates unacceptable misconceptions about the court's power and the way it operates, which depends on states consenting to its jurisdiction through ratification of the

Rome Statute The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court is the treaty that established the International Criminal Court (ICC). It was adopted at a diplomatic conference in Rome, Italy on 17 July 1998Michael P. Scharf (August 1998)''Results of the R ...

and co-operating with the court to provide resources required to perform investigations and prosecutions. Without all the shooting, ''Crossing Lines'' is more closely related to the special crimes investigations unit of the first International Criminal Tribunal at The Hague in the Netherlands. These crime investigators from all over the world do indeed operate across national jurisdictional lines in connection with major crimes such as murder, rape, torture and kidnapping that occurred in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. John Cencich's ''The Devil's Garden: A War Crimes Investigator's Story'' (Potomac Books, Washington, D.C.) demonstrates how police investigators from Germany, France, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Italy, the United States, and many others worked pursuant to the authority of the United Nations Security Council, without relying on national police forces, to investigate and bring to justice some of the world's worst criminals.

References

External links

Official Facebook page

''Crossing Lines''
at NBC
''Crossing Lines''
at Tandem Communications * {{IMDb title, 2427220, Crossing Lines 2013 American television series debuts 2015 American television series endings 2010s American crime drama television series French crime television series 2013 German television series debuts 2015 German television series endings Television shows set in the Netherlands American English-language television shows CBC Television original programming Television series by Tandem Productions Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television series created by Ed Bernero Sat.1 original programming Works about the Russian Mafia Television shows set in The Hague NBC crime dramas