Barry Watson, who rose to fame as Matt Camden in the WB drama “7th Heaven,” has signed on to star in the upcoming UP television movie “Far From Home.”
Watson plays Nicholas Bell, who angrily left his small island town after a terrible fight with the uncle who raised him and owned the local newspaper where Nick began his writing career. After cutting off all ties with his uncle and going out on his own, Bell wrote a wildly successful novel, “Broken Windows,” which led critics to declare him to be the “voice of his new generation.”
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After 15 years of failure to come up with a meaningful follow-up novel, Bell settles into teaching undergraduate writing at a small university. When he learns thast his uncle has died, Bell returns to his hometown for the funeral, suffering one mishap after another. The local townspeople are glad to see the famous homegrown talent return — at least partially because his uncle left him the family’s local paper and key property. Eager to divest himself of the newspaper and return to teaching, Bell finds himself wedged in the middle of a bitter fight over the future of the island — and face to face with the real reason behind what sent him so far from home for so long.
The movie, which began production outside of Vancouver this week, also stars Stefanie von Pfetten (“Cracked,” “NCIS”), Barbara Pollard (“The X Files”), Eli Goree (“Emily Owens M.D.,” “Pure Pwnage”), David Allan Pearson (“The Killing”), Patricia Harras (“Supernatural,” “Fantastic Four: Rise of Silver Surfer”), Keith Martin Gordey (“Watchmen,” “Alcatraz”), Gemini Award winner Lorne Cardinal (“Insomnia,” “Corner Gas”), Christina Jastrzembska (“The Twilight Saga: New Moon”), Paul McGillion (“Star Trek,” “Tomorrowland”), Venus Terzo (“Da Vinci’s Inquest,” “Scattered”) and Aleks Paunovic (“Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters,” “Arctic Air”).
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“‘Far From Home’ is an intimate character drama about a man forced to confront the issues that can tear you from home – and bring you back again,” UP’s senior vice president, original programming Barbara Fisher said of the film. “Shot on location across a spectacularly beautiful Pacific Northwest island, Barry Watson leads a strong cast in this moving story that affirms that home really is where the heart is.”
The movie, which is produced by Front Street Pictures, is being executive produced by Front Street Pictures’ Harvey Kahn (“R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour,” “Endgame”), and will premiere on UP next year. Michael Scott (“Touched by an Angel”) is directing from a script by newcomer Bryar Freed.