TV and Movies

[feline groovy]

The recipient of 17 Emmy nominations and four wins during its 1993-1999 run on NBC — is finally ready to be streamed.

All seven seasons of the acclaimed drama series as well as 2000’s Homicide: The Movie wrap-up, all remastered to HD and 4K for the first time, will begin streaming Monday, Aug. 19 on Peacock.

Peacock is currently $7.99/month.

The police procedural developed for television by Paul Attanasio starred the late Andre Braugher as Baltimore PD homicide detective Frank Pembleton, a role for which he earned an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor. The series also introduced audiences to Det. John Munch (played by the late Richard Belzer), who made the move to Law & Order: Special Victims Unit following Homicide‘s conclusion in 1999.

Until now, music rights issues/clearance costs had famously kept the drama from being available for streaming, for first-time samplers or longtime fans wanting to revisit its excellence.

David Simon, author of the 1991 novel Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, first hinted at Homicide‘s eventual arrival on streaming back in December 2023, when he posted to X that NBCUniversal “is at last attempting, along with Fremantle on the overseas rights, to clear music rights on #Homicide for eventual streaming. Lot of work to do achieve that, however, I am also told.”

“There is a lot of licensed music in the show from a vast array of artists,” Simon explained back then. And at the time of the drama’s 1990s run, “They didn’t pay for future platforms. And do you know what? Artists deserve to be paid for their work earning money for corporations on various platforms.”

When asked why the music originally used in the show can’t simply be dubbed out or replaced with other music — as is sometimes done, with varying success (WKRP, shudder) — Simon explained to an X follower, “Film is carefully cut to tempo, melody and theme of music especially in montage sequences. You can sub anything for anything. And eff it up.”

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[Shelbelle]

Sheer excellence, filmed right here in Baltimore.

Once they were filming on my friend's street, and she had to move her car for a few days, I remember the exact episode it was too, it featured Richard Belzer mostly. 

[pigletsmom]

Oh wow, I might have to watch again. I watched this entire series when I went through a ridiculous bout of insomnia and I think it was on the old Court TV channel at like midnight every night. Watching it that way really made you notice how it sort of went creepily off the rails towards the end if I remember correctly.

[Trix]

Homicide: Life on the Street exceeded the usual on network TV.  

@feline groovy thanks for letting us know that reruns will be available on Peacock starting tomorrow.  

[bmorechick]

@Shelbelle  Yes!  It sure was.  I remember when I would go home to visit my family back then, we would always lunch in Fells Point. The PD Dept was fiilmed at the old Recreation Pier Building.  Jeeze,  my mom played basketball at that Rec Pier in the 1940's.  Was within walking distance of my Grandma's.  I love that area!

[avid shopper]

@feline groovy 

Thank you so much for posting this.   I have been waiting FOREVER to be able to watch this show again.  I have checked for availibility from time to time to no avail.  So excited!

[MoJoV]

That was one of my all-time favorite shows. What a wonderful, talented cast and writers. 

[deeva]

I've already watched two episodes.