''The Net'' is an American drama series based on the 1995
film of the same name. The series starred
Brooke Langton
Brooke Langton (born November 27, 1970) is an American actress. She had significant guest roles on the NBC series '' Friday Night Lights'' and on ''Life'', in which Langton played a district attorney. She found early success on '' The Net'' (19 ...
as Angela Bennett, the character
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Annette Bullock (; born July 26, 1964) is an American actress and producer. The recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Sandra Bullock, various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, Bullock was ...
played in the film. Produced in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada, the series originally aired for one season on the
USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...
from July 18, 1998 until canceled on March 27, 1999.
Synopsis
In
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, Washington, computer expert and software-design consultant Angela Bennett (Brooke Langton) accidentally receives a top secret email with information about an elite terrorist organization called the Praetorians. Angela, whose online
avatar
Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearanc ...
is "Angel", soon discovers that the Praetorians' goal is to take control of people's lives through the use of computers. The Praetorians become aware of Angela's knowledge of them and steal her identity, placing her new identity, Elizabeth Marx, on the
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
's Ten Most Wanted List. Angela is framed for the murder of her neighbor, Tillie, and goes on the run.
Sean Trelawney, the head of the Praetorian security, makes it his personal mission to capture or kill Angela. Angela soon discovers that 14 years earlier, in 1984, her father used to be attached to a secret government project in an underground facility at Copper Canyon. After the project was over, Angela's father, seemingly, abandoned his family, but now Angela believes, he went into hiding to keep his family safe. Dr. Phillip Wayland, one of the last surviving members of the research and development team, assists Angela in getting her to the Copper Canyon facility but is killed when the facility is blown up by the Praetorians. Angela, with the help of a mysterious online persona named "Sorcerer" (voiced by
Tim Curry
Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...
), sets out to stop the Praetorians and win back her true identity while staying one step ahead of both the FBI and the Praetorians.
Initially, Angela communicates with Sorceror via a portable prototype computer, but once the device is accidentally destroyed by a riding lawnmower, she is forced to communicate with him via standard computer equipment and
internet café
An Internet café, also known as a cybercafé, is a café (or a convenience store or a fully dedicated Internet access business) that provides the use of computers with high bandwidth Internet access on the payment of a fee. Usage is generally ...
s as she travels the country evading the authorities and attempting to thwart the Praetorians. Eventually, Angela meets 17-year-old computer genius Jacob Resh, who reveals himself to be "Sorceror". To Angela's surprise, the
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
born and raised Jacob is not British at all like his online voice made him seem to be. During the early 1980s, Jacob's father had worked alongside Angela's father in Copper Canyon but was killed by the Praetorians, who made it look like a suicide. Angela deduces that it was Jacob who sent her the email that set the Praetorians upon her and destroyed her world in the first place. Jacob, whose mother abandoned him in 1988, lives in his widowed grandmother's basement and lives off the royalty payments from a video game he designed when he was 13. He convinces Angela to continue working with him to bring down the Praetorians and Jacob promises to continue to help Angela look for her missing father. To Angela's dismay, they ultimately learn that her father died in 1985.
Eventually, Mr. Olivier, the former Praetorian Board of Directors Chairman, turns on the Praetorians due to them having him committed to an institution and provides Angela and her friends with the means to infiltrate and destroy the Praetorians' main base of operations. Trelawney escapes the invasion but Mr. White, the head of the Praetorians, commits suicide by overdosing on a new synthetic drug called Zero. The Praetorians are destroyed. After Angela's case is reviewed by the FBI, she is exonerated. Not only does Angela get her identity back, she is also given the opportunity to work for the newly formed Center for Intrusion Control, based in her hometown of Seattle. Trelawney, Angela's primary nemesis for the better part of the prior year, infiltrates the FBI training grounds in
Quantico, Virginia
Quantico ( or ; formerly Potomac) is a town in Prince William County, Virginia, United States. The population was 480 at the 2010 census. Quantico is approximately 35 miles southwest of Washington, DC, bordered by the Potomac River to the east a ...
, and attempts to shoot Angela while on the
shooting range
A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, sports venue, venue or playing field, field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice or shooting sport, competitions. So ...
, but is gunned down by Angela's new boss, Walter Cizelski, instead.
Angela's first assignment after graduating from her eight-week training course is to put an end to an online fight ring that almost always ends in the death of one of its participants. Meanwhile, Jacob has graduated high school and relocates to Seattle to attend the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...
. However, he still has time to assist Angela on her next assignment—stopping the maker of a chemical weapon from distributing it on a larger scale. To that end, Jacob poses as a transfer student at an Oregon high school while Angela pretends to be a substitute chemistry teacher. Ultimately, the high school senior responsible for creating the chemical weapon is shot and incapacitated while trying to deliver it to his buyers, all three of whom are killed by the authorities during the transaction. Angela's final assignment before the series is cancelled is to find out the identity of a killer who uses video surveillance footage of his victims to stalk them before he murders them. Angela finds herself as the latest target but she and Walter are able to turn the tables on the killer and apprehend him.
Cast
Main
*
Brooke Langton
Brooke Langton (born November 27, 1970) is an American actress. She had significant guest roles on the NBC series '' Friday Night Lights'' and on ''Life'', in which Langton played a district attorney. She found early success on '' The Net'' (19 ...
as Angela Bennett (episodes 1-22)
*
Joseph Bottoms
Joseph Bottoms is an American actor who won the 1975 Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year for his role in '' The Dove''. He is also well known for his roles in the television mini-series ''Holocaust'' and Disney's '' The Black Hole''.
Ca ...
as Sean Trelawney (episodes 1-19; episodes 20-22 credit only)
*
Tim Curry
Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...
as the Voice of the Sorcerer (episodes 1–10)
*
Eric Szmanda
Eric Kyle Szmanda (; born July 24, 1975) is an American actor. He is best known for having played Greg Sanders in the CBS police drama ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', a role he held from the show's beginning in 2000 until it ended in 2015.
E ...
as Jacob "Sorcerer" Resh (episodes 10–22)
*
Bruce Abbott
Bruce Paul Abbott (born July 28, 1954) is an American film, stage, and television actor. Originally beginning his career in theater, Abbott later gained notoriety for his role as Dan Cain in the cult film, cult sci-fi horror films ''Re-Animator'' ...
as Agent Walter Cizelski (episodes 19–22)
Recurring
*Kelli Taylor as Anna Kelly (Episodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 9, 18)
*
Mackenzie Gray
Alexander Mackenzie Gray (born 22 November 1957) is a Canadian film, television, and stage actor. He is a dual citizen of the United Kingdom and Canada. He divides his time between Toronto and Vancouver.
Life and career
Gray was born in Toron ...
as Greg Hearney (Episodes 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, 18 (credit only))
*
Jim Byrnes as Mr. Olivier (Episodes 4, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 19)
*Dion Luther as Carl/Michael White (Episodes 4 (as Carl), 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19)
Guest stars
*
Jack Coleman as Dr. Steven Graf (episode 3: "Transplant")
*
Clyde Kusatsu
Clyde Kusatsu (born September 13, 1948) is an American actor and trade union leader of Japanese descent. Since 2013, he has served as the National Vice President of SAG-AFTRA Los Angeles Local.
Life and career
Clyde Kusatsu was born in Hawaii a ...
as Greg (episode 6: "Kill the Buddha")
*
Keegan Connor Tracy
Keegan Connor Tracy (born December 3, 1971) is a Canadian actress and author. She is best known for her roles as Audrey Malone in the Showtime comedy-drama series '' Beggars and Choosers'' (1999–2000), the Blue Fairy in the ABC fantasy drama s ...
as Nadine (episode 8: "Jump Vector")
*
Jeffrey Combs
Jeffrey Alan Combs (born September 9, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for starring in horror films, such as ''Re-Animator'', and appearances playing a number of characters in the ''Star Trek'' and the DC animated universe television fra ...
as Max Copernicus (episode 16: "Lunatic Fringe")
*
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor and former professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he was integral to the developm ...
as Brody (episode 20: "Last Man Standing")
*
Jeremy Renner
Jeremy Lee Renner (born January 7, 1971) is an American actor and musician. He began his career by appearing in independent films such as '' Dahmer'' (2002) and ''Neo Ned'' (2005), then supporting roles in bigger films, such as ''S.W.A.T.'' (2 ...
as Ned (episode 21: "Chem Lab")
Production
The
stunt coordinator
A stunt coordinator, usually an experienced stunt performer, is hired by a TV, film or theatre director or production company for stunt casting. Their job is to arrange the casting (stunt players and stunt doubles) and performance of stunts for ...
for the series was
David Jacox
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
.
Episodes
Home media
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (abbreviated as SPHE) is the home video distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation.
Background
SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures lib ...
released the complete series on DVD in Region 2 on May 15, 2006.
Amazon.com, ''The Net: The Complete Series'' DVD release info
/ref> It was also released on DVD in Region 4 on 21 March 2006.
The order of the episodes on the DVD release is in production order instead of broadcast order, which differed slightly; airing episode #18 is #4, and episodes 5 and 6 are in reverse order, on the DVD release.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Net, The (American Tv series)
1990s American drama television series
1998 American television series debuts
1999 American television series endings
English-language television shows
Identity theft in popular culture
Live action television shows based on films
Television series by Sony Pictures Television
Television shows filmed in Vancouver
USA Network original programming