7 Cool facts about CTV’s new crime thriller Sight Unseen

If you’re looking to get into a new detective thriller, there’s nothing else on TV like Sight Unseen, CTV’s latest drama. The series debuts Sunday, Jan. 21, following the football game, then makes its regular timeslot debut Monday, Jan. 22, at 10p ET/PT with a repeat showing. 

The series stars newcomer Dolly Lewis as Det. Tess Avery. When she begins to lose her vision while on the job, she ignores it. But then a mistake nearly costs the life of her partner and dear friend, Jake Campbell, played by Daniel Gillies of The Originals and Saving Hope fame.

So, Tess quits the force and leans on her childhood friend, Matt (Jarod Joseph, The 100). She can’t quit the case at hand, though. So she hires a virtual seeing eye guide named Sunny, played by Agam Darshi (Sanctuary), who has a ton of secrets of her own. Together, they work to find answers while landing themselves in a few sticky situations.

Want to know more about the series and how it’s breaking new ground in its depiction of the visually impaired community? Read on to learn some cool behind-the-scenes tidbits. 

It’s inspired by a real experience

Sight Unseen was co-created by half-sisters Karen and Niko Troubetzkoy, who have worked in the Canadian TV industry for years on projects like Orphan Black, Killjoys, and 19-2. But this is the first time the sisters have co-created a show together, and it is a very personal show. 

One morning, after a night out with friends, Karen woke up with detached retinas. She was unable to see and needed emergency surgery in both eyes. The doctors warned her she might never be able to see again. 

Fortunately, Karen slowly recovered. She has degeneration of her retinas and has undergone many surgeries over the past 20 years, but these days she can thankfully see. The experience stuck with her, though, and she’s always thought about creating a show with a visually impaired lead. 

Virtual guides are a thing

Sight Unseen came together when Niko heard the story of a woman who hired a virtual seeing-eye guide. Through the use of a camera and microphone, this guide helped her to navigate the world. The sisters thought that was such a neat idea and it helped them to conceptualize the show: a visually impaired detective who “sees” with the help of a stranger nearly 4,000 kilometres away.

Several visually impaired people contributed to this show

To represent the visually impaired community in an authentic way, the Troubetzkoy sisters immediately began working with consultants. People from the community were in the writers’ room, working on the story, helping to ensure things were accurate on the set, and lending their expertise the entire time. One of the consultants was even an undercover detective who had lost their sight but continued to work. 

Meanwhile, Lewis is a sight-divergent lead, and one of the supporting actors, Alice Christina-Corrigan, is visually impaired and neurodivergent. 

The leads never filmed in the same room

One of the cool things about Sight Unseen is that even though Lewis and Darshi’s characters are working together and solving crimes, the actors are never actually in the same room. On-screen, it works thanks to the magic of cinema. But in real life, each lead had to film their scenes separately. 

To build their chemistry and get a feel for the banter, Darshi would come on set during Lewis’ scenes in the first episode and read her lines off-camera. Then, when all those scenes wrapped, she would show up and work on her scenes in her character’s apartment.

This show initially took place in Toronto

When the sisters wrote the first script for Sight Unseen, they thought it would take place in Toronto. But because so many productions were filming there, the producers moved the series to Vancouver.

If you’re a fan of Vancity or have always wanted to go, there are plenty of incredible landscapes to check out throughout the show. Moving Sight Unseen to Vancouver also added another layer of tension to the series because it puts the New York City-based Sunny even farther away from Tess.

There’s a scene inspired by Silence of the Lambs

If you’ve ever watched Orphan Black, you’re probably familiar with the show’s dark tones and horror references. Those are partially thanks to show co-creator John Fawcett, who helmed the camera and directed 17 of the 50 episodes. 

The Troubetzkoys both worked on Orphan Black and knew they wanted Fawcett to direct and set the tone on Sight Unseen. He came on as an executive producer and directed four of the show’s 10 episodes, including the premiere.

Speaking of the premiere, Fawcett reveals that one of the scenes in it was inspired by Silence of the Lambs. If you want to see what he’s talking about, check out the basement scene with Jodi Foster.

Notable Canadian actors pop in throughout

If you’ve ever watched Blindspot, The Listener, Red Oaks, or Children Ruin Everything, you’ll probably recognize Ennis Esmer when he pops up in Episode 3. We don’t want to spoil anything, but it looks like another fun role for the actor, who may be the most prolific one currently in Canadian television.

Other notable actors in the series include Roger Cross (Motive, Coroner, and Continuum) and Tony Giroux, who has worked for years as a professional dancer and has appeared alongside artists like Rihanna, Pitbull, and Zendaya.

Sight Unseen debuts Sunday, Jan. 21, following the football game on CTV, then makes its regular timeslot debut Monday, Jan. 22, at 10p ET/PT with a repeat showing on CTV, CTV.ca, and the CTV app.