Month: April 2021

KJ Smith (Dynasty) is set as a series regular opposite Ben Aldridge and Matt Barr in the CW drama pilot Skinny Dip, from writers Russel Friend and Garrett Lerner, Keshet Studios and CBS TV Studios.

Written by Friend and Lerner based on the novel by Carl Hiaasen and directed by Marc Buckland, Skinny Dip centers on Joey, who, after her husband, Chaz (Aldridge), tries to kill her on what she thought was a romantic cruise to celebrate their second wedding anniversary, teams with a jaded ex-cop, Mick (Barr), to exact her own twisted brand of revenge on her cheating spouse and winds up uncovering a wider conspiracy in the process.

Smith will play Karla. A misplaced Detroiter now living in Miami, Karla is a detective investigating the strange disappearance of Joey. Coming off a bad relationship of her own, she interviews Chaz (Aldridge) – and immediately gets the feeling that something’s not quite right.

Smith’s credits include recurring roles on Dynasty, Family Time, Queen Sugar and Survivor’s Remorse. She also will be seen in a lead role in Tyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeral. She’s repped by Abrams Artists Agency and Zero Gravity Management.

In launching their company AGBO while directing back-to-back The Avengers sequels, Joe and Anthony Russo have made it clear their venture is all about elevated storytelling. They’ve just added another platform beyond film and TV: interactive location-based entertainment. AGBO has made a deal to team with The Tension Experience to develop new immersive experiences, destinations and brand partnerships. In this new joint venture, AGBO will be joining as producers of the groundbreaking show and support the development and expansion of Tension to more cities.

The Tension Experience was hatched three years ago when Darren Lynn Bousman — the director of Saw II, III & IV and other fright fare — teamed with writer Clint Searsand producer Gordon Bijelonic to launch what they call “immersive theater,” these stationary destinations where patrons get the daylights scared out of them. The first planned project in the joint venture will be the creation of a permanent destination in Las Vegas, in tandem with a casino partner. They will turn it into a nightlife experience and believe this will be a step forward in the evolving medium of interactive entertainment which has been tried selectively with Virtual Reality exhibitions and “escape rooms.” This particular venture will be designed to be reactive to its audience’s individual choices and decisions, and incorporate technology to create a satisfying audience experience.

“We’re always searching for new and innovative ways to interpret narrative,” said Anthony and Joe Russo. “We’re beyond impressed by the wholly immersive experience that Tension has brought to all of their shows, and we look forward to helping them expand their reach.”

In the early days of The Tension Experiences, its architects designed it so that patrons become the stars of their own real-life, cinema-quality thrillers, helped by hundreds of actors and and visual effects. Bousman has devoted most of his energy the past few years honing the formula.

“As a consumer, I became passive,” he said. “I sit back and I watch while things happen around me. I wanted to feel more engaged. I needed something to wake me up and inspire me. Immersive theater did that. It forces the audience to be active. We want to create environments where the audiences are the stars… Their action unlocks the narrative.”

Said Bijelonic: “When we embarked on this journey our goal was to change and disrupt the traditional storytelling format. We wanted to give our audiences a true visceral experience incorporating all five Human Senses.”

Said Sears, who scripts the stuff: “This is the most fulfilling creative endeavor we could possibly be involved with. It’s unparalleled in its scope and possibilities. The team feels that their experience along with the unparalleled creative force of AGBO will help create the most exciting immersive collaboration in the world.”

Prema Cruz (Mozart in the Jungle) have joined the recurring cast for Season 3 of AMC’s Preacher.

Based on the popular cult comic book franchise, Preacher is a supernatural and darkly comedic drama that follows a Texas preacher named Jesse Custer, played by Dominic Cooper, who is inhabited by a mysterious entity called Genesis that gives him the power to make people do whatever he commands.

Cruz will portray Madame Boyd, a tough forward thinker. Educated and attractive, she is taking the family business into the modern age.

Cruz recently recurred on Amazon’s Mozart in the Jungle and ABC’s Time After Time. Other credits include arcs on Showtime’s Billions as well as CBS’ Madam Secretary. She is repped by the Gersh Agency and Zero Gravity Management.

Former Mom star Sadie Calvano is set as a series regular in NBC drama pilotSuspicion, from The Path creator Jessica Goldberg, Universal TV and Keshet Studios. Created/written by Goldberg based on the book by Joseph Finder and directed by Brad Anderson, Suspicion is described as a Hitchcockian thriller about how far one man will go to save the people he loves. After Danny Goldman accepts a handshake loan from his new friend and millionaire neighbor, he gets a visit from the FBI and learns that the decision is one he will regret for the rest of his life. Coerced to work as an informant for the FBI to earn back his freedom, Danny is forced to infiltrate a world of violence and corruption while trying to protect his family. Calvano will play Tatiana Canter. She has only just recently begun to be social and active, thanks mostly to her strong friendship with Ellie. Calvano, whose breakout role was in Chuck Lorre’s Mom, can be seen next in the upcoming feature Eggplant Emoji from producer Ben Stiller with Jake Szymanski directing for Netflix. She recently starred in the critically praised Webby nominated miniseries The Skinny from executive producer Jill Soloway. Calvano is repped by Paradigm, Zero Gravity Management and attorney Steve Younger.

Nigerian-born actress Sope Aluko has secured a role in Sony’s Venom standalone, directed by Ruben Fleischer and starring Tom Hardy as the titular supervillain. Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Scott Haze and Reid Scott also co-star in the pic, written by Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner. Not much about the plot is known other then it will be Spider-Man-centric, but won’t be related to the Spider-Man cinematic universe. Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and Amy Pascal are producing, with executive producers David Householter and Stan Lee. The movie is slated to bow in theaters October 5. Sope, who appeared in Disney’s Black Panther, and can next be seen in The Best of Enemies starring Sam Rockwell and Taraji P. Henson, is repped by Zero Gravity Management, Brady, Brannon & Rich Talent (BBR) and People Store.

Former Navy SEAL Jason Cabell has assembled a cast that also includes Leslie Bibb, Laurence Fishburne and Cole Hauser for his directorial debut.

Nicolas Cage leads a cast that includes Laurence Fishburne, Leslie Bibb, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg, Clifton Collins Jr, Cole Hauser and Peter Facinelli for the border-crossing drug trade thriller Running With the Devil.

Jason Cabell, a former active-combat Navy SEAL, wrote and is directing the movie, which began production this week in New Mexico.

Cabell drew on his real-life experiences — he worked with the DEA in Colombia and served in more than 100 countries, including Iraq, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter — to chronicle the story of a cocaine shipment that travels from Mexico though the U.S. to Canada. When the shipment is compromised to the dismay of a cartel leader known as The Boss (Pepper), he orders his most trusted Cook (Cage) and another master drug trafficker, The Man (Fishburne), on a dangerous journey to audit the company’s supply chain.

The script includes the characters The Farmer (Collins Jr.) ,who works with his wife and children in the jungles of Colombia; The Executioner (Hauser), who helps the Cook and the Man; and The Snitch (Goldberg), who is compromised and threatens to reveal secrets.

Also in the mix are Agent in Charge (Bibb) and her Number One (Facinelli), who dog the cartel.

Patriot Pictures’ Michael Mendelsohn, who previously worked with Cage on Vengeance: A Love Story and USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage, is producing with Jim Steele. Mike Nilon, Etchie Stroh and Natalie Perrotta are executive producing.

Queen of Colombia Pictures, LLC is fully financing the film. Etchie Stroh is handling international sales.

Cage is coming off of the buzz-generating action movie Mandy, which premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festival and was picked up for distribution by RIje Films.

BET has added to the cast for The Bobby Brown Story, its two-part miniseries starring Woody McClain as the veteran R&B singer. Mekhi Phifer, Lil Rel Howery, T.K. Carter, Laz Alonso, Lance Gross, Alyssa Goss and Sandi McCree also are set to star as production begins toady in Atlanta.

The New Edition Story broke BET ratings records when it aired in January 2017, and The Bobby Brown Story picks up where that pic left off following Brown’s successful solo run. McClain is reprising his role as Brown, one of the genre’s original “bad boys” whose life epitomizes the meaning of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll. His hits may have kept him at the top of the charts, but his antics kept him on the front page.

Phifer (Frequency) plays Tommy Brown, Bobby’s brother. Howery (The Carmichael Show) is Brian Irvine, Bobby’s business manager. Carter (The Corner) plays Herbert “Pops” Brown, Bobby’s father. Alonso (The Mysteries of Laura) is Louil Silas Jr, an MCA producer-executive who helps make Bobby a solo star. Gross is set as Steven Sealy, a childhood friend of Bobby’s who is killed in a gunfight after hanging with him at a hometown bar. Goss plays Bobby’s current wife, Alicia Etheridge, and McCree will reprise her New Edition Story as Bobby’s mother Carole Brown.

The Bobby Brown Story is executive produced by Jesse Collins (The New Edition Story) for JCE Films, a division of Jesse Collins Entertainment; written by Abdul Williams (Lottery Ticket, The New Edition Story) and directed by Spike Lee protégé Kiel Adrian Scott.

BET plans a two-night September premiere for The Bobby Brown Story.

MGM Television (Fargo, The Handmaid’s Tale) has optioned Hiding In Time, an Image Comics miniseries written by Christopher E. Long and illustrated by Ryan Winn, to develop as a television series. Richard Smith (In Her Name/White Horse Pictures) is attached to pen the adaptation.

Published under the ShadowLine Comics label in 2007, Hiding in Time, is set in the near future, where time travel has been cracked and the Witness Protection Program begins relocating those who turn in State’s Evidence to various times in history. Abraham Smith is one such witness, relocated to the past, living a life that’s not his own, centuries before he’s even born. When a witness within the Program is murdered anachronistically, a conspiracy is revealed and Abraham’s safety is called into question.

Long is set to co-executive produce, along with Ray Miller and David Server of Archetype who will serve as producers. Lloyd Braun of Whalerock Industries executive produces with MGM Television’s Andrew Mittman.

The three-part series had a limited release but was well-received and was optioned by Warner Brothers in 2008 for a feature film.

Smith is repped by Verve, Andrew Wilson at Zero Gravity and attorney Tanya Mallean.

Leonard Roberts (Major Crimes) and Australian actress Andrea Demetriades (Pulse) have been cast as series regulars opposite Michael Chiklis and Teyonah Parris in CBS drama pilot Murder, from Lin Pictures and Warner Bros. TV.

Written by Amanda Green based on the British miniseries and directed by Anthony Hemingway, this new take on the investigative drama explores crime through the unique and often-conflicting perspectives of cops and killers, witnesses and victims, friends and family. Shot like a true-crime documentary, the series, which centers on Detectives Mason Garrity (Chiklis) and Ayana Lake (Parris), invites the audience inside the emotional journey of an investigation, allowing them to discern the truth and judge the suspects’ guilt or innocence for themselves. Cast also includes Luna Lauren Velez and Pallavi Sharda.

Roberts will play Assistant District Attorney Malachi Sandel, a talented, charismatic homicide prosecutor whose persuasive skills and charm extend from the courtroom to his active social life. But a new case, coupled with a new romantic interest, has him questioning his choices in work and in life.

Demetriades is Raquel Bennett, a Legal Aid defense attorney, who’s both highly skilled and deeply passionate about advocating for her clients. A formidable opponent in court, she never goes down without a fight, but her magnetic personality makes even her legal opponents enjoy facing her at trial.

Lin Pictures’ Dan Lin executive produces Murder with Green; Lindsey Liberatore co-exec produces.

Roberts is coming off the final season of TNT’s Major Crimes in the series regular role of Leo Mason. He also recurs on Mom as Ray. His film credits include American Sniper and Drumline. Roberts is repped by TalentWorks, Zero Gravity Management and Jackoway Tyerman.

Jane the Virgin’s Jaime Camil has signed with Zero Gravity Management. In a case of life imitating art, the Mexican actor was a real telenovela star when he was cast as telenovela star Rogelio de la Vega (and Jane’s father) in the Peabody-winning CW dramedy, now in its fourth season. Camil also is part of the all-Latino voice cast of Pixar’s Oscar-nominated Coco. He spent his past two summer hiatuses on stage, playing Sam Carmichael in Mamma Mia! at the Hollywood Bowl last year and Billy Flynn in Chicago on Broadway in 2016. Camil continues to be represented by Jackoway Tyerman.