Nellie Andreeva

Rescue Me co-star Callie Thorne is staying on the cable series beat as the lead on the USA Network pilot Necessary Roughness. Meanwhile, Australian actress Rachael Carpani has landed the central role in another cable pilot with a female lead, Lifetime’s Against the Wall.

Inspired by the true story of a female psychiatrist who takes a gig as a consultant to the New York Jets that leads to a new career for her, Necessary Roughness centers on a tough, sexy Long Island divorcee (Thorne) who, to make ends meet, becomes the therapist for a professional football team and quickly becomes sought after by other athletes, musicians, politicians and those living in the spotlight. Elizabeth Kruger and Craig Shapiro wrote the script and are executive producing with Kevin Dowling, who will direct, Donna Dannenfesler and Joe Sabatino. On Rescue Me, Thorne plays Sheila Keefe, is the sexy, foulmouthed Italian-American widow of Tommy’s (Denis Leary) firefighter cousin Jimmy Keefe who has a stormy relationship with Tommy. She will co-star on the show’s final seventh season, which wrapped production this summer for a summer 2011 run. Homicide alumna Thorne, repped by Gersh and Untitled, also had major recurring roles on ER, The Wire and Prison Break.

Written by Annie Brunner and to be directed by Dean Parisot, Against the Wall is a family drama set in Chicago following policewoman Abby Kowalski (Carpani), who causes a rift with her three cop brothers when she decides to join the department’s Internal Affairs division. Universal Cable Prods. is producing. In the U.S., Carpani is probably best known for her co-starring role on the short-lived CBS drama Cane.

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