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[title]Towns where nothing ever happens are often the first to break that promise. That is the premise behind Murder in a Small Town, the new crime drama premiering August 19 on Universal+.
Based on Canadian writer L.R. Wright’s Alberg and Cassandra Mysteries novel series, the show follows Karl Alberg, a detective who leaves behind the fast pace of the big city to start over in the peaceful fishing town of Gibsons, located on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast. But the calm doesn’t last long: a series of murders begins to shatter the town’s apparent tranquility, forcing him to uncover what his neighbors are hiding.
A project with a personal meaning
“It’s a crime series set in this idyllic place in British Columbia, a fishing town. The story revolves around a detective and a librarian who fall deeply in love and, well into the second half of their lives, discover that passion we all hope to experience at some point. So it’s a love story, but it’s also a murder story,” Rossif Sutherland tells Time Out Buenos Aires in an exclusive interview.
Murder in a Small Town holds special significance for its lead because of the family history surrounding the project. For more than three decades, his father, acclaimed actor Donald Sutherland, championed an adaptation of L.R. Wright’s Karl Alberg novels, hoping to bring them to the big screen. Although that version never came to fruition, the actor knew before his death that his son would ultimately play Karl Alberg.
“My dad had been involved with this project for thirty years... He was very happy that I was able to be part of bringing this story to life,” he explains. “In fact, he was going to play what I believe was the main suspect in the first episode of our series. We filmed the first season the same year my father passed away, so he never got to see any of the series. But he was very happy that I was able to be part of bringing this story to life,” Rossif concludes.
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Why Karl Alberg breaks the detective stereotype
Far from the cold or intimidating investigator who often appears in this type of production, Karl Alberg is defined by a less common trait in the crime genre: empathy. Sutherland says that when he received the offer, he hesitated to accept because he had already played detectives before. However, he found in this character a completely different approach to investigation.
“He was someone who could get people to tell the truth, even when they had done really terrible things, because he had tremendous empathy and a great deal of curiosity.” He adds: “He’s someone who doesn’t try to intimidate people into telling the truth. It’s not about pulling out a gun or flashing a badge. It’s not about wearing a uniform, either. Ultimately, he’s a person who lives by a code and enforces the law... but the real reason he does his job is that he is deeply fascinated by other people, by human beings,” he explains.
That approach to others turns Karl into a detective who seeks to understand before judging. Even when he encounters people who have committed terrible acts, his goal is not only to discover what happened, but to understand what led someone to that point. “We all carry our secrets. We all deal with our traumas and, sometimes, with very decisive forms of revenge and cruelty. But that doesn’t come out of nowhere.”
For the actor, Karl acts as a bridge between those two realities: the crime and the person behind the act. “Just because someone has committed a terrible crime doesn’t mean they’re simply a monster,” he reflects.
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Cassandra, the romance that brings the detective back to life
While Murder in a Small Town revolves around a series of murders, the heart of the story lies in the relationship between Karl Alberg and Cassandra Lee, the bookstore owner played by Kristin Kreuk. For Rossif Sutherland, this romance is what truly sets the series apart from other crime dramas.
The actor says the chemistry between them came naturally from the very first meeting with Kreuk. “From the moment I met her, I knew she was going to be a lifelong friend. There’s a connection between us... she makes me feel like a kid again. The first time we met, I spent the entire day laughing,” the actor shares.
That connection made portraying their relationship much easier. “When you have that, the work becomes much easier. You look forward to going to set every day because there’s less acting involved. You can simply be yourself,” he explains.
Sutherland highlights that one of the series’ biggest strengths is its love story: two middle-aged people who, despite the wounds and disappointments they carry, fall in love again with the intensity of youth. For the actor, that bond not only transforms the characters’ lives, but also encourages them to become better versions of themselves.
“It’s quite rare for a crime series, which has to follow the classic ‘whodunit?’ structure, to have the opportunity to really get into the life of the character.” He adds that, through this relationship, Karl stops living solely for his work and finds a new purpose. “He used to live for his work. But now, as the years go by, he starts living for the person he loves.”
Combining romance, mystery, and complex characters, Murder in a Small Town offers a crime drama that relies less on action and more on understanding what drives people to cross certain lines. Its first season, consisting of eight episodes, premieres in Argentina on August 19 on Universal+.