"Long Bright River" was filmed in New York City, but the Peacock series captures the essence of Philadelphia through the people who worked on it.

"We brought Kensington to us," Nikki Toscano, the showrunner, executive producer, writer and director on the drama, said ahead of a panel at FringeArts on Friday.

MORE: Amanda Seyfried is a Philly police officer who patrols Kensington searching for her sister in 'Long Bright River' trailer

"Long Bright River," which premieres Thursday, follows Mickey Fitzpatrick (Amanda Seyfried) as a Philly cop who patrols Kensington while trying to raise her young son without help from his absent father. As police look into a series of mysterious deaths of sex workers in the neighborhood, Mickey worries about her missing sister, Kacey (Ashleigh Cummings), who has been battling drug addiction for years. 

"When you go to Philly, there's such pride, and you feel like you're part of something, and you do feel that in the show, for sure," said Seyfried, who's also an executive producer on the project and made frequent trips to Philly growing up in Allentown.

There are tons of little things — including Wawa cups, Eagles hats, colorful street art, flashy Mummers costumes and noticeable accents — in the show that embraces Philly. There is also special attention paid to issues like substance use and homelessness that will feel familiar to many who live here. All of these details are largely thanks to local people who helped curate them.

The series is based on a 2020 novel of the same name by Temple University professor Liz Moore, who's from Massachusetts but has lived in Philadelphia for the past 16 years. Moore, who's an executive producer and writer for the show, said that filming outside Philly allowed the "Long Bright River" team to "create a place to play," and from there they were able to invite prominent Philadelphians, including important members of the Kensington community, to work as consultants, artists, musicians and background actors. Some of the series' stars also had their own special connections to the city that helped them bring authenticity to their characters.

Provided Image/Peacock

Temple University professor Liz Moore, left, who wrote the book 'Long Bright River,' worked with showrunner Nikki Toscano to bring the show to life. Above, the pair pose together during an event at FringeArts on Friday.

'(They) were much like my character'

John Doman, known for roles on "The Wire" and "ER," plays Mickey's grandfather Gee, one of the few family members she keeps in touch with. Doman grew up in Fishtown and said learning that "Long Bright River" was set in Kensington was a huge factor in joining the cast. Gee bartends in a Mummers clubhouse and has a gruff exterior that softens every once in a while, usually for his great grandson and his pet bird. Doman said he had plenty of inspiration for the character.  

"The neighborhood was very different back then, but the people I grew up with, the older guys, the men of the families, were much like my character, blue-collar tough guys who don't wear their emotions on their sleeve, and they keep it all inside until it burst out every once in a while," Doman said. "... My father had 13 kids in his family, so I had a lot of uncles who were just like Gee."

Gee's great grandson, Mickey's wise-beyond-his-years son named Thomas, is played by Callum Vinson. The talented young actor from Wilmington, Delaware, is a "a very strong Philly sports fanatic," according to Moore, and he even wore an all-green suit in honor of the Eagles at the New York City premiere of "Long Bright River" earlier this month. 

David Holloway/Peacock

John Doman, who plays Gee, said he drew on his own life experiences growing up in Fishtown to play the tough patriarch. Above, Gee talks with his great grandson Thomas (Callum Vinson).

Seyfried, known for roles in "Mean Girls," "Mamma Mia!" and "The Dropout," said her many fond memories of Philadelphia from when she was younger include sleep-ins at the Franklin Institute, NSYNC concerts, partying at Temple University as a teen, and her sister attending the now-closed University of the Arts. Seyfried also revealed that the first time she saw "Les Miserables," which she starred in the 2012 film adaptation, was when it was on tour in Philly.  

"Philly was good to me," Seyfried said. "Philly was like a gift to all of us, like it would be like a really big, big deal when we got to go to Philly."

While Seyfried had a working knowledge of the city, and learned more about it from Moore's book, she also undertook strenuous research about being a police officer in Philadelphia. Back when Moore was researching to write the "Long Bright River" novel, she went on a ride-along with police to find their routines and terminology that was specific to Philly. Seyfried did the same last year in January, calling it "the most informative day of my life."

During Seyfried's time in the passenger seat of a cop car for about three hours, she said she had a front row seat as the officers dealt with everything from traffic stops to "a corpse." She said she still keeps in touch with some of the officers she shadowed.

"With every organization or industry, there's always the good guys and the bad guys. And I was really lucky to have been surrounded by the good ones," Seyfried said. "... They're single mothers, and they work their asses off to come home every night. So, I wanted to play one of the good cops, and one of the cops who are really looking out for these community members, these Kensington residents, because you see in the show, they're pushing them away. They're cleaning them up, all the encampments, just completely destroying the little dignity that they've built."

Matt Infante/Peacock

In 'Long Bright River,' Amanda Seyfried plays Mickey, a Philly cop who patrols Kensington looking for her sister. Above, Mickey with her former partner, Truman (Nicholas Pinnock).

Not all of the stars hail from the Philly region, though. For example, British actor Nicholas Pinnock, who plays Mickey's former patrol partner and friend Truman Dawes, said his research consisted of reading Moore's book and speaking with some people the author put him in touch with. But her script gave Pinnock a sense of who his character was.

"The scripts were so well informed that everything was on the page," Pinnock said. "There was very little that I needed to understand exactly who Truman was. ... I just had to be authentic to (the script), and do my best to tell the story."

'So generous in offering their stories'

Australian actress Cummings, who plays Kacey, learned a lot about Kensington and the character she was playing through Sarah Laurel, executive director of the Savage Sisters nonprofit, which is based on Kensington Avenue and provides resources for those living with or affected by substance use disorder. Cummings said she took the train from the set in New York to Philly to help out at Savage Sisters, and she walked away with a deeper understanding and empathy. She said she also perfected her Kensington accent with help from Laurel's partner.

"Everyone there, the staff, the friends of the community who had come, were just so generous in offering their stories, their experiences," Cummings said of her time at Savage Sisters. "So I definitely feel indebted to them. ... One thing I was really surprised by at the storefront at Savage Sisters was how much we laughed. Sometimes I think it's easy to two-dimensionalize a person struggling with this because you see just the addiction, as opposed to who they are outside of the substances. Being able to spend time with people you learn about their lives, about their particular qualities and the clothes that they like and their favorite colors, or very little things."

Along with Laurel, other consultants on the show also included Bill McKinney, executive director of the New Kensington Community Development Corporation. Philly-native artist Timothy Curtis was asked to join production to ensure that the sets had Philly's signature street art. For example, in one scene, Mickey is exploring a seemingly abandoned house she believes to have been inhabited by her sister, and the walls are covered from ceiling to floor in work by local artists.

Provided Image/Peacock

A panel held Friday, March 7, at FringeArts spotlighted some of the people from Philadelphia who worked on 'Long Bright River.' Above, actress Amanda Seyfried talks with Savage Sisters executive director Sarah Laurel, rapper OT The Real, The Roots member James Poyser, Father Michael Duffy of Kensington's St. Francis Inn, and Catholic Worker Free Clinic volunteer Johanna Berrigan.

"(Curtis) is very well-connected to the community of graffiti artists in Kensington," Moore said. "So he invited them all to set, and they tagged up a ton of our backgrounds."

Music is an important part of the "Long Bright River" series, including Mickey's love for classical music, passed down by her late mother, and her practicing the English horn — "She's kind of snobby. We laughed because we thought the English horn would always be an instrument that others would call the French horn, and then she would get to correct them," Moore joked. 

Gee spends a lot of time at the Mummers clubhouse, where his string band member pals try to recruit Mickey to play with them. The Avalon String Band and Philadelphia Mummers String Band Association were brought on to consult on the music and costumes. 

The Philly vibe of the show's soundtrack is also thanks in part to the series' co-composer, James Poyser, a Philly-native member of The Roots. He helped cultivate the sound, which brings "this uneasy tension underneath the surface," Toscano said. Songs by up-and-coming Philly artists were also used in the soundtrack.  

Professional and first-time background actors from Philly played a variety of roles, from dangerous drug dealers to Mickey's family members and former classmates. Philly rapper OT The Real and Father Michael Duffy, of the St. Francis Inn Ministries in Kensington, are among the community pillars making their scripted series debuts.

"It was very meaningful to our trained actors to be working opposite people who didn't have training but who brought so much authenticity and energy to set," Moore said. 

'Such a spirited community that it's inspiring'

The Philadelphia region has been the backdrop for many high-profile series in recent years, from 2021 drama "Mare of Easttown" to the feel-good sitcom "Abbott Elementary." Two other crime shows, "Deli Boys" and "Dope Thief," are set here and also premiere this month. Why is Hollywood flocking to Philly (or a fictional version)?

"I think for a long time (Philadelphia) was under explored," Moore said. "Obviously, there were, the big, iconic (stories) like 'Rocky,' but those were the only cultural references that people had outside of Philadelphia. ... I think the rest of the country is finally catching up to the fact that Philly has a lot to offer and a lot of really interesting stories."

Toscano, who attended the University of Delaware, also has a theory on why Philly's striking a chord.

"I feel like at a time where people are searching for a greater meaning in life, Philadelphia is such a spirited community that it's inspiring, and I feel like the world is sort of lacking that," she said. "And this is this place that sort of serves it up."

When it came to adapting the Philadelphia story of "Long Bright River" in particular, Toscano said it was a no-brainer because of Moore's "nuanced portrayal of addiction and also that this is a story that both upends the savior narrative and upends the victim narrative," which she said is something she'd never seen before. Moore added that many characters experience a "big shift" in their perception of addiction as the series goes on, including Mickey, who believes she's made all the right choices while her sister has not. She eventually comes to see it's not so simple, according to Moore. The cast and crew behind "Long Bright River" hope the message will translate to real life.

Provided Image/Peacock

Mickey (Amanda Seyfried) and Kacey (Ashleigh Cummings) are two sisters who grew up in Kensington and chose different paths in 'Long Bright River.'

"Like most people in the world, my loved ones have been affected by the opioid epidemic and so to love people and to know people who are struggling with substance use, and to know who they are before those moments, during them, maybe after them, it's very easy to know that they're full human beings," Cummings said. "Maybe they weren't given the privileges that I was afforded or it was circumstances that that led to the situation. ... I think everyone would be able to have compassion if you spent time with a person instead of just looking away or ignoring or walking past."

Seyfried added: "We're all so close to that, like we are one or two degrees away from having the same struggle. So, what's the judgment about, when really that's the thing that destroys communities?"

All eight episodes of "Long Bright River" stream Thursday on Peacock. Check out the trailer below: