Ryan was set to executive produce "Confessions of a Contractor", a 2009 CBS television pilot based on Richard Murphy's book of the same name. The story centres on a successful L.A. contractor who becomes involved with two of his female clients. The production was put on hold when casting contingencies could not be met. He was the show runner for season 2 of Fox's "Lie to Me". He was the show runner and executive producer of FX's "Terriers". He created the crime drama "The Chicago Code". In 2012, Ryan's pilot "Last Resort" got picked up by ABC for the fall. On November 21, 2012, it was announced that producers had been given enough notice of the network's plans not to pick the show up for a full season and that they were reworking the final episode to function as a series finale and give the fans closure.