Jason Priestley based ‘Wild Cards’ rogue on ‘guy who conned him’ 25 years ago

Call it a case of art imitating life.

Jason Priestley, who plays imprisoned con man George Graham in the new CW Wednesday-night dramedy “Wild Cards,” said he didn’t have to look far to draw inspiration for his on-screen alter ego.

“[Series creator and executive producer] Michael Konyves and I had a number of discussions about George,” Priestley, 54, told The Post. “But the reality is that I ended up building that character based on a guy who actually conned me about 25 years ago.

“There was a group of us who got conned by this guy; we got in this real estate investment with him and then he took off with a bunch of the money,” the “Beverly Hills, 90210” alum explained.

“So I spent a lot of time writing down all the qualities that he had that made him a good con man — and then I built the character around him,” he added.

“Wild Cards” was co-produced by the CBC and the CW and shot in Vancouver last fall.

It revolves around Max Mitchell (Vanessa Morgan) and Cole Ellis (Giacomo Giannotti): she’s a professional con artist (with good intentions) who’s busted for trying to steal from a snarky rich woman to help out a friend; he’s a cop who’s been demoted to water-patrol duty after being framed for a crime he didn’t commit and wants desperately to rejoin the force (on land … he lives on a houseboat he inherited from his late brother).

Max and Cole are both looking for a road to redemption — and they get their chance to turn their lives around when the police commissioner (Karin Konoval) decides that Max won’t be prosecuted for her crime but will work with Cole, who rejoins the force on a trial basis, to catch the bad guys.

They’re assigned to the watch of exasperated, nervous Chief Li (Terry Chen), who grudgingly admits that the pair has the right combination of brains and moxy to handle their assignments.

Priestley, in a supporting role, plays George, Max’s con-artist father who’s serving time in the joint but who consults with his daughter on her cases when she comes to visit him.

The series, which doesn’t take itself too seriously, has a “Moonlighting” vibe about it, particularly in the relationship between Max and Cole.

“The show really follows this unlikely duo — she’s a very freewheeling con artist and he’s this by-the-book, button-down police officer,” Priestley said. “When I watch the series, it does feel like a throwback to ‘Moonlighting‘ and ‘Remington Steele,’ which is a formula in TV that’s tried and tested and is usually very successful.”

Priestley said that, as the season progresses, viewers will learn more about the relationship between Max and her father, who appear to have an ulterior motive in their collaboration and in Max’s working with Cole.

“There’s a lot more to the Max and George dynamic that will be revealed,” he said, tongue planted firmly in cheek. “George actually may or may not get out of prison for a time and may or may not assist his daughter in pulling a con. It’s a possibility.”

Priestley, who recently did an interview with his “90210” co-star Shannon Doherty amid her battle with breast cancer, is coming off the long-running Canadian series, “Private Eyes.”

He said he was not looking for a supporting role when the offer for “Wild Cards” came along.

“It’s just the way it worked out,” he said. “The last two series I’ve done I’ve been carrying the freight on the show and my last series … we shot in Toronto and that just ended a year-and-a-half ago.”

“It’s not like I was trying to change my position in the industry, it’s just the way this one worked out,” he continued. “But now that I’m experiencing playing this kind of character on the show, and being a little lower down on the call sheet, it’s kind of nice. I go to Vancouver and work for a couple of days and then get on a plane and come back home. It’s a very different experience and one that I’m enjoying.”

“Wild Cards” airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on the CW.