Friday, February 26, 2016

Development News - T.R. Knight Returns to ABC for Drama Pilot; Bill Paxton to Star in 'Training Day'; Plus 15 More Updates!

Development News - February 26, 2016

A&E's The Infamous; ABC's The Death of Eva Sofia Valdez, Model Woman, Toast & Untitled Meaghan Oppenheimer; CBS' Drew, The Kicker, My Time/Your Time & Training Day; The CW's Frequency & Riverdale; FOX's 24: Legacy, Charity Case & Pitch; and NBC's Cruel Intentions, Time & Untitled Caamaño/Sztykiel.


ABC's UNTITLED MEAGHAN OPPENHEIMER PROJECT
  • T.R. Knight (Grey's Anatomy, 11.22.63) has been cast on the untitled drama pilot written by Meaghan Oppenheimer - marking his first return to ABC since his character's death on Grey's Anatomy back in Season 5. He will play Mark, an associate lawyer at Gemma's firm. He has a jovial sloppiness about him, at least that's what he wants you to think. He's jockeying for a partner position, same as Gemma, and starts to weasel into her cases.
NBC's CRUEL INTENTIONS
  • UnREAL alum Nathalie Kelley has joined the cast of the drama pilot starring Sarah Michelle Gellar. She will play Carmen, the stunning and brilliant chief of staff for Kathryn (Gellar) and her husband Pascal. She lives in their mansion, along with her teenage brother.
A&E's THE INFAMOUS
  • Michelle Mitchenor (Chi-Raq) has landed a regular role on the drama pilot starring Bokeem Woodbine. She will play Eva Adams. All other character details were not immediately released.
CBS' TRAINING DAY
  • Emmy nominee Bill Paxton (Big Love, Hatfields & McCoys) has been cast in the lead role on the drama pilot based on the film of the same name. He will play Frank Rourke, a veteran LAPD cop who heads up the Special Investigation Section (SIS), a unit that goes after the worst of the worst. He lives by the law of the jungle and believes that real courage is the will to chase the bad guys where the law won't. He isn't too keen on babysitting new trainee, Kyle Craig.
THE CW's FREQUENCY
  • Lenny Jacobson (Big Time in Hollywood, FL) will co-star on the drama pilot starring Peyton List and Riley Smith. He will play Gordo, Raimy's (List) next-door neighbor and lifelong friend. He grows deeply concerned for her as she tries to prevent a long-ago tragedy.
FOX's CHARITY CASE
  • Isiah Whitlock Jr. (The Wire) and Dan Gill (The Wedding Ringer) have been cast on the comedy pilot starring Courteney Cox. Whitlock will play Ronald, stoic and loyal, he is Hailey's (Cox) No. 2, a hard-working, diplomatic fellow, always ready with a supportive world when Hailey feels discouraged. Gill will play Mark, a young, cynical smart-ass, he is one of the program officers for Hailey's philanthropic organization.
FOX's 24: LEGACY
  • Emmy winner Jimmy Smits (Sons of Anarchy, The Get Down) has joined the cast of the drama pilot starring Corey Hawkins and Miranda Otto. He will play John Donovan, a senator running for president who is looking forward to having his wife, Rebecca (Miranda Otto) - the former head of CTU - by his side in his bid for the White House.
CBS' DREW
  • Graceland alum Vanessa Ferlito has booked a regular role on the drama pilot written by Joan Rater and Tony Phelan. Additionally, James Strong has signed on to direct and executive produce. Ferlito will play George, Nancy Drew's best friend, a NYPD homicide detective and Nancy's former partner on the force who has an innate ability to put other people at ease.
CBS' THE KICKER
  • Rules of Engagement star David Spade will co-star on the comedy pilot starring Geoff Stults. He will play Russ Thorkelson, Daryl's (Stults) brother and sports agent who spends most of his time doing damage control while Daryl says something else controversial. Although he's eternally stressed, Russ loves his brother more than anything for giving him a career opportunity in the sports world.
CBS' MY TIME/YOUR TIME
  • Utkarsh Ambudkar (The Mindy Project, The Muppets) has landed a regular role on the comedy pilot starring Jane Levy and Nicholas Braun. He will play Jay, Wade's (Braun) friend and co-worker who, on the surface, looks like a slacker/surfer dude but is secretly ambitious.
NBC's TIME
  • Claudia Doumit (Scandal, Dude) has been cast on the drama pilot written by Shawn Ryan and Eric Kripke. She will play Jiya. No other character details were immediately released.
FOX's PITCH
  • Mark Consuelos (All My Children, Alpha House) has joined the cast of the drama pilot starring Kylie Bunbury. He will play Oscar, the team's general manager and president, a former player who hopes to make Ginny (Bunbury) feel welcome and does his part to handle the extraordinary situation in which he finds himself in. With the success or failure of the club in mind, he wants to see Ginny do well in her first game.
ABC's THE DEATH OF EVA SOFIA VALDEZ
  • Zabryna Guevara (Gotham) and Marta Milans (Wizard of Lies) have booked regular roles on the drama pilot written by Charise Castro Smith. Guevara will play Teresa, Eva Sofia's loving and bubbly younger sister, a Cuban immigrant who also worked her way up from poverty to a position of power and prosperity. Milans will play Alegria, Eva Sofia's daughter-in-law who has a pure heart and a sincere desire to do good in the world.
THE CW's RIVERDALE
  • Newcomer Camila Mendes has been cast on the drama pilot based on the Archie Comics characters. She will play Veronica, an intelligent, confident and silver-tongued high school sophomore who returns to Riverdale from New York eager to reinvent herself after a scandal involving her father.
ABC's MODEL WOMAN
  • Chris Mason (Vampire Academy, Mad Genius Project) will co-star on the drama pilot written by Hell Childress. He will play Elsdon Geiss, Bertie's youngest son, who's smart, interesting, perceptive and has already proven that he has the knack for finding new faces.
NBC's UNTITLED VLADIMIR CAAMANO & ADAM SZTYKIEL PROJECT
  • Maria Canals-Barrera (Wizards of Waverly Place, Cristela) has landed a regular role on the untitled comedy pilot written by Vladimir Caamaño and Adam Sztykiel. She will play Andrea, Vlad's (Caamaño) high-energy mom who loves everything about the United States.
ABC's TOAST
  • Tessa Ferrer (Grey's Anatomy, You're the Worst) has joined the cast of the comedy pilot written by Scott Foley and Greg Grunberg. She will play Julie. No other details were immediately released about the character, though it's not the female lead of the pilot.