Murder in the First, Rizzoli & Isles, Animal Kingdom: TNT Teases Summer Series

TNT has releases some additional bits of information regarding their upcoming summer programming. Viewers can look forward to the returns of The Last Ship, Major Crimes, Murder in the First, and Rizzoli & Isles — as well as the series premiere of Animal Kingdom.

Here are the details:

Summer 2016 Original Programming

Rizzoli & Isles – Season 7 Premiere: Monday, June 6, at 9/8c
TNT’s chart-topping hit Rizzoli & Isles is back this summer with Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander as Boston’s toughest crime-solving duo. The show will return this summer for its seventh and final season.

Rizzoli & Isles launched in 2010, finishing its first year as basic cable’s #1 new series. Each year since, it has ranked as one of basic cable’s Top 5 series with total viewers, as well as one of the Top 10 series with adults 25-54. The sixth season of Rizzoli & Isles is reaching an average of 11.5 million viewers per episode across TNT’s on-demand, digital and mobile platforms.

Rizzoli & Isles is produced for TNT by Warner Horizon Television and Bill Haber’s Ostar Productions, with Haber, show runner Jan Nash, Greg Prange and Ken Hanes serving as executive producers. Janet Tamaro developed the series, which is based on characters created by best-selling crime novelist Tess Gerritsen.

Animal Kingdom – Series Premiere: Tuesday, June 7
Animal Kingdom is a bold drama starring Emmy® and Tony® winner Ellen Barkin (Sea of Love, This Boy’s Life, Oceans 13 ), Scott Speedman (The Strangers, The Vow), Shawn Hatosy (Southland, Reckless),Ben Robson (Vikings, Dracula: The Dark Prince), Jake Weary (Pretty Little Liars,It Follows), Finn Cole (Peaky Blinders, An Inspector Calls), Daniella Alonso ( Revolution) and Molly Gordon (Love the Coopers, Ithaca).

The series centers on 17-year-old Joshua “J” Cody (Cole), who moves in with his freewheeling relatives in their Southern California beach town after his mother dies of a heroin overdose. Headed by boot-tough matriarch Janine “Smurf” Cody (Barkin) and her right-hand Baz (Speedman), who runs the business and calls the shots, the clan also consists of Pope (Hatosy), the oldest and most dangerous of the Cody boys; Craig (Robson), the tough and fearless middle son; and Deran (Weary), the troubled, suspicious “baby” of the family. Also prominent are Nicky (Gordon), J’s steady girlfriend, and Catherine (Alonso), Baz’s de facto wife and the mother of their 3-year-old daughter, Lena.

It isn’t long before Josh is pulled into the family’s life of indulgence and excess, but he soon discovers that it’s all being funded by criminal activities. Joining the family comes with more danger and excitement than he might be ready to handle.

Animal Kingdom is produced by John Wells Productions in association with Warner Horizon Television, with Emmy® winnerJohn Wells (TNT’s Southland, ER, The West Wing, Shameless) and Jonathan Lisco (TNT’sSouthland, Halt and Catch Fire, Damages, NYPD Blue) serving as executive producers of the series, along with Etan Frankel (Shameless, Southland) and Christopher Chulack (ER, Southland). Wells directed the pilot from a script by Lisco. Andrew Stearn (TNT’s Southland, Shameless) also executive-produced the pilot. The project is inspired by the award-winning feature film produced by Liz Watts and written & directed by David Michôd, who will also serve as executive producers on the series.

The Last Ship – Season 3 Premiere: Sunday, June 12, at 9/8c
The wait is nearly over. TNT’s epic drama The Last Ship – one of last summer’s Top 5 scripted series on basic cable among total viewers, adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 – is preparing to set sail again in its quest to save humanity after a devastating pandemic with a two-hour premiere this summer. Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy), Bridget Regan (Agent Carter), Adam Baldwin ( Firefly, Chuck), Travis Van Winkle (Heart of Dixie), Marissa Neitling (Leverage) and Jocko Sims (Masters of Sex) star in the high-impact series, which is produced by Platinum Dunes, with its partners – blockbuster filmmaker Michael Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form – serving as executive producers. Co-creators and showrunners Hank Steinberg (creator of Without a Trace, The Nine) and Steven Kane (The Closer) are also executive producers, along with executive producers and directors Paul Holahan and Michael Katleman.

Based on William Brinkley’s popular novel, The Last Ship chronicles a global catastrophe that nearly decimates the world’s population. Because of its positioning, the Navy destroyer U.S.S. Nathan James avoided falling victim to the devastating tragedy. But now, Captain Tom Chandler (series star Eric Dane) and his crew must confront the reality of their new existence in a world where they may be among the few remaining survivors.

Following the epic second season cliffhanger, the highly anticipated third season finds the crew of the Nathan James shifting their attention to Asia after President Michener hears rumblings that the Chinese leader, President Peng, has been hoarding the “Scott cure” instead of distributing it to the people in the region. Michener sends Chandler to a global summit to investigate this allegation, as well as rumors of a possible mutation of the original virus that has caused a fresh outbreak in Japan. If the mutation has occurred, and Asia has not been protected, the consequences for the world are dire. With Rachel Scott shot in the season two finale, and her fate as yet unknown, hope is in low supply. The Last Ship also starsCharles Parnell (Pariah), Christina Elmore (Fruitvale Station), Bren Foster ( Days of Our Lives) and Kevin Michael Martin.

Major Crimes – Season 5 Premiere: Monday, June 13, at 10/9c
Major Crimes centers on a special unit of Los Angeles Police Department detectives responsible for investigating high-profile crimes. The series features a stellar ensemble cast headed by two-time Oscar® nominee Mary McDonnell as Captain Sharon Raydor. Also starring are G.W. Bailey as Lieutenant Provenza, Tony Denison as Lieutenant Andy Flynn, Michael Paul Chan as Lieutenant Mike Tao, Raymond Cruz as Detective Julio Sanchez, Phillip P. Keene as tech expert and reserve officer Buzz Watson, Kearran Giovanni as Detective Amy Sykes, Jonathan Del Arco as Dr. Morales and Robert Gossett as Assistant Chief Russell Taylor. In addition, Graham Patrick Martin stars as Rusty Beck, a formerly homeless teen who was adopted by Captain Raydor in the third season.

Major Crimes returns with more mysteries in its fifth season as the squad sets out to solve some of the worst and most challenging homicides in America’s second largest city. Whether it involves hunting for a missing teenage girl who vanished while helping the homeless, hunting down the killer of a potentially dirty cop, following up on an ISIS-related beheading in an isolated corner of Los Angeles, or putting back together a body burnt to cinders in an Elysian Park grilling pit, the investigators strive to return balance to the scales of justice. This season, Sharon also strives to push her adopted son, Rusty, through college while figuring out where she wants to go in her ongoing romance with Andy Flynn; Julio Sanchez decides to try to adopt a child himself; Provenza develops some sensitivities related to his new marriage to Patrice (recurring guest star Dawnn Lewis); Buzz Watson picks up where the LAPD left off on their murder investigation of his father and uncle 30 years ago; Mike Tao wins an award for his work as a Hollywood consultant; and Amy Sykes confronts whether she wants to have children or stay focused on her career.

In season four, Major Crimes reached an average of 10.3 million viewers per episode across TNT’s linear, mobile and digital platforms. The series is produced by The Shephard/Robin Company and Walking Entropy, Inc., in association withWarner Bros. Television. James Duff, Greer Shephard & Michael M. Robin, Rick Wallace, Adam Belanoff, Mike Berchem and Duppy Demetrius serve as executive producers.

Murder in the First – Season 3 Premiere: Sunday, June 19, at 10/9c
TNT will once again take viewers deep inside a complex murder investigation with the return of the powerful crime dramaMurder in the First. Created by Emmy® winner Steven Bochco and Eric Lodal,Murder in the First centers on a pair of San Francisco detectives – played by Taye Diggs (Private Practice) and Kathleen Robertson (Boss) – who investigate tough crimes that put the city on edge. In the first season, the show focused the murder of a woman who worked for the powerful head of a tech company, while season two centered on a brutally vicious shooting that threatened to rip the city apart.

Homicide Inspectors Terry English and Hildy Mulligan are thrust into the tangled world of sports and celebrity when a pro-football player is murdered. As their investigation becomes increasingly more complex, the Inspectors are faced with their own, personal tribulations, compounding the cascading pressures of the case. Meanwhile, the prolific DA of SF has his pedal to the medal as he attempts to stay afloat after an unfortunate tragedy threatens his livelihood.

Murder in the First launched as one of basic cable’s Top 10 new series of 2014 and went on to reach more than 5.6 million viewers per episode across multiple platforms in its second season. The series is produced by TNT Originals, with Steven Bochco serving as executive producer.

What do you think? Do you plan to tune in for any of these TNT shows this summer?