ABC's Bucktown & The Wonder Years; The CW's Naomi; Hulu's Punk Ass Bitch; and TBS' Kill the Orange-Faced Bear.
THE CW's NAOMI
- Kaci Walfall will play the title character on the drama pilot written by Ava DuVernay and Jill Blankenship. Alexander Wraith, Cranston Johnson and Camila Moreno have also been today. Walfall has guest starred on CBS' Person of Interest and Starz's Power. Wraith has recurred on Netflix's Orange Is the New Black and CBS' Hawaii Five-0. Johnston starred for two seasons in SundanceTV's Hap and Leonard. Moreno is a recent acting graduate at NYU, Tisch School of the Arts.
- Walfall will play Naomi, an effortlessly cool and confident high school student who is the adopted daughter of doting parents. Popular with all the kids in her military town, she is unafraid to embrace her AP-student, comic book-loving nerdiness. After a supernatural event leads to the discovery of her powers within, Naomi pursues her hidden destiny.
- Wraith will play Dee, the owner of a local tattoo parlor. When a strange event leaves the town in chaos, he hints that he knows more than he is willing to tell.
- Johnson will play Zumbado, the mysterious owner of a local used car lot. Having heard troubling rumors about his past, Naomi actively tries to avoid him, but a tense encounter leaves her both shaken and curious.
- Moreno will play Lourdes, a young woman with a sarcastic sense of humor who works in a vintage collectibles shop. She has an unrequited crush on Naomi, and she shares her obsession with classic comics. She is also happy to join in on Naomi's schemes.
TBS' KILL THE ORANGE-FACED BEAR
- Damon Wayans Jr., Jessy Hodges, Alex Karpovsky and Nate Torrence will star in the comedy pilot written by Chris Romano. Wayans Jr. starred for three seasons in ABC's Happy Endings and one season in FOX's New Girl. Hodges starred in NBC's one-season comedy Indebted. Karpovsky starred for five seasons in HBO's Girls. Torrence stars in HBO's one-season comedy Hello Ladies.
- Wayans Jr. will play Hank, the charming, funny and grieving man who's hell-bent on tracking down the bear who attacked his girlfriend on a camping trip.
- Hodges will play Stacy, Hank's late girlfriend, as well as Jamie, her twin sister with a confusing secret.
- Karpovsky will play Ronnie, an oddball park ranger who has a score to settle with Hank.
- Torrance will play Murray, Hank's best friend and Jamie's boyfriend, who is just trying to keep everyone together.
ABC's THE WONDER YEARS
- Dulé Hill and Laura Kariuki have been cast as series regulars on the comedy pilot starring Elisha "EJ" Williams and Saycon Sengbloh. Hill starred for seven seasons in NBC's The West Wing, eight seasons in USA's Psych (as well as its two follow-up movies) and two seasons in USA's Suits. Kariuki is currently recurring on The CW's Black Lightning.
- Hill will play Bill Williams, Dean's (Williams) dad. He's a music professor by day and a funk musician by night - described by Adult Dean as "the baddest guy I knew." Almost always calm and composed, his favorite words are "be cool." Bill wants his family and their Black, middle class neighborhood to remain self-sufficient and he puts his money where his mouth is.
- Kariuki will play Kim Williams, Dean's teenage sister. Confident, bright and popular, she and Dean bicker as siblings do but they have a good relationship. Her parents have her preparing for college - but Kim is starting to rebel, telling them "Bobby Seale and H. Rap Brown didn't even finish college" and that she'll learn more from Eldridge Cleaver's "Soul on Ice" than the SATs.
ABC's BUCKTOWN
- Shannon Woodward is set as the lead in the comedy pilot written by Emily Wilson. Nicole Richie has also been cast today. Woodward previously starred for four seasons in FOX's Raising Hope and two seasons in HBO's Westworld. Richie starred for two seasons in NBC's Great News.
- Woodward will play Amy. After being dumped by her boyfriend and kicked out of her apartment on the eve of a big promotion, she finds refuge at her mom's house in the blue-collar neighborhood where she grew up. She reconnects with her teenage niece living there due to her sister's latest rehab stint and resolves to stay when she realizes that her mom and niece aren't quite equipped to go it alone.
- Richie will play Jan, Amy's boss. A self-centered force who tends to suck up all the energy in a room, she is very professional - except in the extremely unprofessional partnership with her husband, Finn.
HULU's PUNK ASS BITCH
- Frankie Quinones and Michelle Ortiz will co-star on the comedy pilot written by and starring Chris Estrada. Quinones starred in TBS' one-season comedy The Dress Up Gang. Ortiz has recurred on Netflix's Gentefied and TruTV's Tacoma FD.
- Quinones will play Luis, a tatted up gangster who's just finished eight years in prison. He is tough, aggressive, macho yet immature. He's not just a hard ex-gangster, he's someone who also has not grown up yet emotionally.
- Ortiz will play Maggie, Julio's (Estrada) ex-girlfriend. Feisty, strong-willed and fierce, it's clear that they still have a spark and hang out together even though they both drive each other crazy.
