Edie Falco’s Showtime Comedy Underway

Edie Falco as a nurse with a taste for illicit drugs? Yep, you better believe it because that’s exactly what she plays in her forthcoming Showtime series, yet another of the cable network’s signature dark comedies, this one currently called Nurse Jackie.

A three-time Lead Actress Emmy winner for her most notable series thus far, The Sopranos, Falco has reportedly already wrapped filming of the new show’s first episode in New York. She plays an emergency room nurse with a penchant for drugs, which help her endure her high-stress job and perform effectively. She performs so well, in fact, doctors seek out her services due to her rumored ability to diagnose patients faster than anyone else.

Although Showtime hasn’t announced when or even if the series will wind up on its schedule, the general consensus is that an eventual pickup is a no-brainer and will lead to a premiere in 2009.

Joining Falco are her former Sopranos colleague Paul Schulze as Jackie’s pharmacy technician boyfriend Eddie, Six Feet Under’s Peter Facinelli as her hospital colleague Dr. Cooper, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip’s Merritt Weaver as new nurse Zoey, The West Wing’s Anna Deavere Smith as hospital administrator Mrs. Akalitus, 24’s Haaz Sleiman as homosexual Muslim nurse Mo-Mo, and English actress Eve Best as Dr. O’Hara. That’s quite an impressive group.

Incidentally, Falco is also an Emmy semifinalist this year for her guest-star work on 30 Rock. I hope she makes it to the final round of contenders.