Casting News - February 12, 2018
ABC's The Rookie; AMC's Preacher; CBS' Salvation; FOX's The Orville; Netflix's The Umbrella Academy; TNT's Claws; and USA's Shooter.
AMC's PREACHER
- Betty Buckley, Colin Cunningham, Jeremy Childs and Liz McGeever have been cast in recurring roles on the drama's upcoming third season.
- Buckley (Cats, Split) will play Gran'ma, a spiritist with true powers who can cast spells and even bring back the dead (for a price). Pay the fee or pay with your soul to feed her thirst for eternal youth. She is weathered, tough and mean, but also intelligent beyond measure. She's Jesse's (Dominic Cooper) only living family and she loves him.
- Cunningham (Falling Skies, Blood Drive) will play TC, a man born of the bayou and the loyal caretaker and soldier for Gran'ma. Weaselly and wiry, he'll gladly tell you about his perversions whether you ask him or not. While he seems like the friendliest guy you'll ever meet, don't make the mistake of turning your back on him.
- Childs (Sun Records, Nashville) will play Jody, the enforcer for Gran'ma and the only man Jesse Custer has never beaten in a fight. Massive and intimidating, he's nobody's fool and not someone to cross.
- McGeever (Star, Homeland) will play Christina, a capable and efficient woman with a face that lures customers in for her family business. She hides it well, but she hates her job and has dreams and aspirations outside of her current life - but suffers to protect her child.
FOX's THE ORVILLE
- Jessica Szohr has joined the cast of the dramedy's upcoming second season as a new series regular. She starred for four seasons in The CW's Gossip Girl and recently recurred on the Showtime dramas Twin Peaks and Shameless.
- She will play a new member of the crew aboard The Orville.
TNT's CLAWS
- Sheryl Lee Ralph has booked a recurring role on the dramedy's upcoming second season. She starred for five seasons in UPN's Moesha and three seasons in Nickelodeon's Instant Mom. She recently recurred on Amazon's One Mississippi.
- She will play Matilde Ruval, the Haitian mother of Gregory Ruval (Jimmy Jean-Louis). She's a benevolent and caring mother to her son, with more going on than meets the eye.
USA's SHOOTER
- Felisha Terrell has landed a recurring role on the drama's upcoming third season. She has previously had recurring roles on Starz's Survivor's Remorse, Amazon's Just Add Magic and MTV's Teen Wolf.
- She will play Carlita, a seasoned military operative who was trained at the same Atlas facility as several of Bob Lee's (Ryan Phillippe) adversaries. When the unexpected death of her commander sets her termination in motion, she's forced to stray from her highly disciplined code.
NETFLIX's THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY
- Grammy winner Mary J. Blige has signed on as a series regular on the upcoming drama starring Ellen Page and Tom Hopper. The singer has won nine Grammys from 31 nominations. She is currently up for two Academy Awards for the film Mudbound - for Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Song. Her casting on the drama marks her first series regular role. Sources say she signed a one-year contract.
- She will play Cha-Cha, a ruthless and unorthodox hit-woman who travels through time to kill assigned targets. Even though she has a few gripes about the bureaucracy of her employers, this job is her life. She is sadistic, sociopathic and her reputation precedes her. Her true love is torture, and she thinks of herself as a "pain artist." She really doesn't care for people - except for her partner Hazel.
CBS' SALVATION
- Melia Kreiling and Ashley Thomas are set as new series regulars on the drama's upcoming second season. Kreiling starred in two seasons of FX's Tyrant while Thomas starred in FOX's short-lived 24: Legacy.
- Kreiling will play Alycia Stavros, a brilliant scientist with a mysterious past who may hold the key to the planet's future.
- Thomas will play Alonzo Carver, a DC detective who refuses to let the impending threat of armageddon interfere with his hunt for justice.
ABC's THE ROOKIE
- Richard T. Jones has been cast as a series regular on the upcoming drama starring Nathan Fillion. He currently stars in CBS' Wisdom of the Crowd, which is unlikely to return for a second season.
- He will play Sergeant Wade Grey, the station's Watch Commander who becomes a nemesis to John Nolan (Fillion).
