Bloomingdale house used in TNT pilot

Local drama television fans may want to keep an eye out in the future for "Leverage," a new action program being filmed for TNT starring Oscar-winner Timothy Hutton.

If you watch closely, you may see a little bit of Bloomingdale in the series pilot, should the program make it onto the cable airwaves.

For about an hour Thursday afternoon, film crews, special effects experts and a few performers shot a brief scene at the northwest corner of Brookdale Drive and Army Trail Road.

TNT spokeswoman Sarah Hamilton Friday said the pilot will be used to decide if "Leverage" will be picked up to air.

Several crew members on the Thursday's makeshift set declined to comment.

But officials said the scene, featuring a young girl walking out of a vacant, run-down house before it explodes, will be part of a flashback sequence in the pilot episode.

Bloomingdale Fire Protection District Chief Dave Christensen said firefighters were on the set to ensure the scene, which included controlled flame and fake glass, was safe.

Police notified residents of the potential distraction with the village's reverse 911 system.

"Leverage" will focus on Hutton's character Nate Ford, according to a program synopsis.

"Once an investigator for huge insurance companies, his life spiraled when his son became deathly ill, and this loyal corporate employee realized he had no recourse when the same companies for whom he had been recovering million-dollar stolen goods denied his son's insurance claims and allowed his son to die," the synopsis reads.

Hutton's character decides to work with a team of thieves to go after "the richest and the greediest and the most unjust," according to the synopsis.

Last season, Hutton starred in NBC's "Kidnapped" series. His film credits include "Beautiful Girls," "The Good Shepherd" and an Oscar-winning performance in "Ordinary People."

Thursday's scene was filmed on the future site of Alden Gardens of Bloomingdale Supportive Living Facility. The Alden Foundation hopes to break ground on the 86-unit facility in the spring and house its first occupants in fall 2009.