Delawareans Weigh In on News of ABC's 'Murder Town' Pilot

News of a future ABC drama—set in Wilmington and titled “Murder Town”—sent people into a social-media frenzy.

The announcement in early November of ABC’s new drama “Murder Town,” the yet-to-be-filmed pilot starring Jada Pinkett Smith that is to be set in Wilmington, set the state abuzz. Some people are angry that the show echoes a Newsweek article from December 2014 that called Wilmington “Murder Town USA.” Others think filming in Wilmington could bring revenue to the city. We scoured Facebook and Twitter to find out what locals are thinking. 

Twitter

As a fan of Will Smith I hate to see @jadapsmith profiting off the bodies of Wilmington’s murder victims! #NetDe
@TheJensenShow, Wilmington, via Twitter 

Stand up Wilmington, our great city is much better than what we are being labeled as.
@gsheimages, New Castle, via Twitter 

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Facebook

Murdertown? Really? I know we have our issues but there is another side to Wilmington. Can we show them what the media is missing in their portrayal of our city? I have an idea. Can we fill up Facebook with positive images of Wilmington and North Wilmington? Hashtag your pics and show them what the media is not.
Meredith McFadden, Wilmington, via Facebook

Government officials, city of Wilmington, you will all be a fool not permitting a production coming to Delaware. Not only would it shine light on cases going unnoticed, it’ll bring revenue and jobs to Delaware. Think people! People complain about the wrong things. Who cares if it’s called “Murder Town.” That’s reality! Don’t like it, band together and help solve the issue than being another talker.
Michelle Mallard Reaves, Newark, via Facebook 

Does “Law & Order” “capitalize” on all the murders in NYC? Does “Chicago PD” “capitalize” on murders in Chicago? I guess we shouldn’t have cop shows, since they “capitalize” on the murders in the cities where they are set.
Teresa Rothaar, Parkside, Pa., via Facebook 

That’s unfortunate. A bunch of has-beens playing in different roles to try to rebuild their acting careers. That’s OK. If they want to come into Wilmington and spend some of that money, go to the west end, the Hotel Du Pont, bring in 500 people to spend at our restaurants. I’ll take their money. I just hope they get somebody good looking to play me.
Mayor Dennis Williams, Wilmington, via Facebook 

The “Murder Town” section is only a smallish area in town. There are sections still considered Wilmington in the 19807 zip code that have primarily $1 million dollar homes and very affluent sections of 19803. Downtown is becoming pretty bad though—It is really a shame that all of the investment has been in shopping, dining and entertainment rather than on education. It’s pretty short sighted to think that the people with the means to enjoy those things are going to be willing to dodge bullets and wrestle muggers to do so. Wilmington needs to triple the police force in those hot zones, invest in the awful public school system and develop mentor-based educational programs for underprivileged children. Wilmington doesn’t get fixed with the current generation; only dedication to the next generation will solve these issues.
Nick Dellaquila, Hockessin, via Facebook 

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