Development News - March 10, 2020
ABC's Harlem's Kitchen, Prospect, Rebel & Valley Trash; CBS' Clarice & Jury Duty; The CW's The Republic of Sarah; and NBC's American Auto & Crazy for You.
ABC's REBEL
- Andy Garcia has been cast as the male lead in the drama pilot starring Katey Sagal and John Corbett. Last year, he starred in the NBC comedy pilot The Kenan Show opposite Kenan Thompson - which was rolled to the 2020-21 schedule and is currently being redeveloped. He has also recurred on HBO's Ballers and Amazon's Modern Love.
- He will play Julian Cruz, the lawyer for whom Rebel (Sagal) consults, though sometimes it seems like it's the other way around. He is a powerful attorney - smart, sexy, down-to-earth and strong in all the best ways. He was widowed two years ago and still is reeling from the loss. Frequently irritated by his most famous employee, he is weary of being guilt-tripped by Rebel into taking on another demanding case.
ABC's PROSPECT
- Diana Maria Riva and Dale Dickey will co-star on the comedy pilot starring Hunter King and David Alan Grier. Riva stars in NBC's Sunnyside, which was moved to its digital platforms and is unlikely to return for a second season. Dickey has previously recurred on TNT's Claws and Netflix's Unbelievable.
- Riva will play Delfina. Street smart, a tough beauty, pragmatic and nonchalant, she works in the town's saloon. She becomes friendly with Abigail (King) when she comes to her for advice. She believes she can be looking at a different type of future once she starts going to Abigail's class.
- Dickey will play Winnie Mae-Winnie, a workhorse, salt-of-the-earth pioneer woman. She does the grueling work of about eight people and pops out another baby every year. She's passive aggressive, mostly toward her husband, Frank, who likes to strum his guitar and sing while she works her ass off. She isn't thrilled with the arrival of Abigail, who'll be staying in her small, humble home. She is illiterate but smart, warm, observant and a 19th century feminist in her own way.
CBS' JURY DUTY
- Meaghan Rath will play the female lead opposite her real-life fiancé Jack Cutmore-Scott in the comedy pilot. Sadie Calvano and Alanna Ubach have also been cast today. Rath currently stars in CBS' Hawaii Five-0, which is airing its tenth and final season. Calvano starred for three seasons in CBS' Mom and in the first season of CBS All Access' Why Women Kill. Ubach starred for five seasons in Bravo's Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce.
- Rath will play Jen. Sarcastic, adorably neurotic and a little controlling, she is a successful book editor who is high maintenance, but thinks she's low maintenance. She feels like the last single girl in the world because all of her friends are married with kids.
- Calvano will play Linzee. Gorgeous and a bit naive, she loves animals and is a vegetarian because "bunnies!" She's also very optimistic, easily excited and too sweet to realize she's the most beautiful girl in the world.
- Ubach will play Judge Wallace, who wanted to be an actress and now the courtroom is her stage, where she's wildly unprofessional and shares way too much personal information. Her Honor likes to "connect" with her jurors and doesn't care how long this trial takes.
NBC's CRAZY FOR YOU
- Shelley Hennig will star in the comedy pilot written by Rachele Lynn. Alice Lee, Tiana Okoye and Nick Cafero have also been cast today. Hennig previously starred for three seasons in MTV's Teen Wolf. Lee is currently recurring on NBC's Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. Okoye's guest credits include NBC's The Good Place and The CW's Nancy Drew. Cafero's guest credits include NBC's The Office and ABC's Black-ish.
- Hennig will play Daisy. With her life stalling, she re-enters the dating scene only to discover that while she was out of the game, the game sort of, totally, completely changed. Realizing she is a bit rusty at being "normal" and "appealing" on first dates, she'll need the support of her friends as she strives to succeed while being her true self in today's quick-to-dismiss dating culture.
- Lee will play Emma. Organized and ambitious, she works with Daisy at a publishing company.
- Okoye will play Tasha, one of Daisy's best friends.
- Cafero will play Ethan, Emma's boyfriend and a genuinely nice guy.
ABC's VALLEY TRASH
- Lulu Wilson is set as the young lead in the comedy pilot starring Jason Lee. She previously starred in the first season of Netflix's The Haunting of Hill House and in the HBO limited series Sharp Objects.
- She will play Abby Harman, a smart, confident tomboy who doesn't suffer fools and finds herself in a bit of a predicament when she starts getting bullied by a popular mean girl at her fancy new school. She tries her best to lead with empathy, but ultimately her temper wins out and the situation comes to blows.
CBS' CLARICE
- Lucca De Oliveira and Devyn A. Tyler will co-star on the drama pilot (which has a series commitment) starring Rebecca Breeds. De Oliveira previously recurred on TNT's Animal Kingdom and CBS' SEAL Team. Tyler has recurred on Freeform's Cloak & Dagger and USA's The Purge.
- De Oliveira will play Tomas Esquivel, who attended Dartmouth on an ROTC scholarship and became a counter-sniper during Operation Desert Storm. He is initially suspicious of Clarice (Breeds), and her singular background in the Bureau. He has gone through his own kind of hazing, and is torn between his love of service, and his belief that the FBI needs to shake off its "old school" mentality.
- Tyler will play Ardelia Mapp, Clarice's closest friend and her roommate at the FBI Academy. She is brilliant and has developed strong coping mechanisms as a black woman working in the white male universe of the FBI. She has landed at the Department of Justice where she is an Assistant U.S. Attorney. She is vocal and open about the discrimination that's rampant in the Bureau and in the DOJ.
THE CW's THE REPUBLIC OF SARAH
- Landry Bender, Ian Duff and Forrest Goodluck have booked series regular roles on the drama pilot starring Stella Baker and Luke Mitchell. Bender starred in the Hulu limited series Looking for Alaska and has recurred on Netflix's Fuller House. Duff has recurred on NBC's New Amsterdam. Goodluck starred in the films The Miseducation of Cameron Post and The Revenant.
- Bender will play Bella. Preppy and composed, she is the daughter of Greylock's mayor and one of Sarah's (Baker) students. She begins to question her allegiance to her "popular girl" status after an unpleasant sexual encounter with her big-man-on-campus boyfriend and quickly finds herself falling for her shy classmate, Tyler.
- Duff will play Grover, a damaged knockout who works at the local diner. His straightforward, blue-collar charm has made him a favorite among Greylock's citizens - including Sarah. He feels the attraction too but carries a painful memory that keeps him from moving forward in life.
- Goodluck will play Tyler, a thoughtful, introspective kid who wears his heart on his sleeve, but he also can be incredibly tough thanks to a difficult childhood growing up on a Native American reservation. As he lends a hand with Sarah's fight against the mining company, he starts making a connection with Bella.
ABC's HARLEM'S KITCHEN
- Clare-Hope Ashitey, Adrianna Mitchell and Pepi Sonuga have landed series regular roles on the drama pilot starring Delroy Lindo and Sheryl Lee Ralph. Ashitey starred in the Netflix limited series Seven Seconds and in the first season of Amazon's The Feed. Mitchell will recur in the upcoming fourth season of FX's Snowfall. Sonuga starred for two seasons in Freeform's Famous in Love.
- Ashitey will play Zadie, the eldest daughter of Ellis (Lindo) and CC (Ralph). Ivy League educated, she could work anywhere she wants but her perpetual sense of responsibility brought her back to RICE as the front-of-house manager. She never wants to disappoint her parents. But all of the pressure has lead her into a third-life crisis that could jeopardize everything she has achieved - it may also work to set her free.
- Mitchell will play Eden, the middle child with one simple dream: to be the first African American chef to earn a Michelin star. Her work ethic as sous chef at RICE is unmatched, but her talent is slightly outpaced by her ambition. Engaged to the adoring, spiritual force and wunderkind master sommelier, Golda, Eden wants her father's spot at RICE, and is willing to cross any line to get what she wants.
- Sonuga will play Nina, the youngest and most mercurial Rice daughter. She's stubborn, volatile and brilliant. Her bond with her father is magnetic, but she has always steered clear of the family business - despite her natural talent in the kitchen. Instead, she found purpose and family in the Harlem streets. She's fresh off of a three-year stint in prison. Now that she's out, Nina finds herself at a crossroads that will make or break her.
NBC's AMERICAN AUTO
- X Mayo has scored a series regular role on the comedy pilot starring Ana Gasteyer. She is currently a staff writer on Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. She previously recurred on Facebook Watch's Strangers.
- She will play Dori, a sweet and wholesome assistant to the CEO (Gasteyer).
