| Necessary Roughness | |
|---|---|
|   Necessary Roughness original intertitle | |
| Genre | Drama | 
| Created by | 
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| Starring | 
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| Country of origin | United States | 
| Original language | English | 
| No. of seasons | 3 | 
| No. of episodes | 38 (list of episodes) | 
| Production | |
| Executive producers | 
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| Producers | Donna Dannenfelser Joe Sabatino | 
| Editors | Debra Weinfeld Briana London | 
| Production companies | 
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| Original release | |
| Network | USA Network | 
| Release | June 29, 2011 – August 21, 2013 | 
Necessary Roughness is an American drama television series starring Callie Thorne and Scott Cohen that aired on USA Network from June 29, 2011, to August 21, 2013. [1] [2] The second season premiered on June 6, 2012. [3] The one-hour drama series was picked up for 12 episodes on January 19, 2011. [4] On January 7, 2013, USA Network announced the series was renewed for a 10-episode third season, [5] which began on June 12, 2013. [6] On November 19, 2013, USA canceled the series after three seasons. [7]
| Season | Timeslot (ET) | # Ep. | Premiered | Ended | TV Season | Viewers (in millions) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Premiere Viewers (in millions) | Date | Finale Viewers (in millions) | |||||
| 1 | Wednesday 10:00 p.m. | 12 | June 29, 2011 | 4.67 [16] | September 14, 2011 | 4.01 [17] | 2011 | 5.85 [18] | 
| 2 | 16 | June 6, 2012 | 3.01 [19] | February 20, 2013 | 1.98 [20] | 2012–2013 | 2.50 | |
| 3 | 10 [5] | June 12, 2013 | 2.61 [21] | August 21, 2013 | 2.36 [22] | 2013 | 2.19 | |
The series is based on the true story of a female psychologist Dr. Donna Dannenfelser who worked for the New York Jets. [4] [23] Initially titled Dr. Donna, the show first appeared on the USA Network's development slate in December 2009. [24] In May 2010, the network placed a cast-contingent pilot order under the new name Necessary Roughness. [25] Liz Kruger and Craig Shapiro wrote the pilot script, and Kevin Dowling was set to direct the pilot. [23]
Casting announcements began in mid-September. First to be cast was Callie Thorne, who plays the lead role as Danielle "Dani" Santino. [26] Next to join the project was Marc Blucas, who was cast as the football team's athletic trainer and a romantic interest for Danielle. [27] Scott Cohen and Mehcad Brooks came on board in October. Cohen portrays a football team colleague of Dani's, [28] and Brooks is one of her clients. [29]
Cast as guest stars [30] were Amanda Detmer, as Dani's best friend, Jeanette, [31] and Concetta Tomei, who portrays Dani's mother. [32] In early November, Craig Bierko was added to the cast as Dani's estranged husband. [33]
The pilot episode was filmed in Atlanta, Georgia in November and December 2010, with the Georgia Dome being used for exterior and some interior shots of game day scenes. [34] The network greenlighted the series on January 19, 2011. [4] The series was renewed for a second season by USA Network on September 15, 2011. [35] The series was renewed for a third 10-episode season by USA Networks on January 7, 2013 [36]
On June 19, 2013, USA Network announced it will debut a webisode series, called TK Gets Real, that will feature Terrance "TK" King (Mehcad Brooks) as he seeks to become a reality star. The web series will last six weeks. [37] The Real Housewives of Atlanta star Shereé Whitfield will appear in the web series alongside Brooks and new cast member Karissa Lee Staples. [38]
Universal Studios Home Entertainment released all 3 seasons on DVD in Region 1 between 2012-2014. [39] [40] [41] On July 1, 2016, it was announced that Mill Creek Entertainment has acquired the rights to the series in Region 1 and rereleased all 3 seasons on September 6. [42]
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Refs | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Golden Globe Award | Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama | Callie Thorne | Nominated | [43] | 
| 2013 | Young Artist Awards | Best Performance in a TV Series - Leading Young Actor | Patrick Johnson | Nominated | [44] |