Thursday, March 25, 2021

Development News - Rebecca Rittenhouse to Play Lead Role in ABC Comedy Pilot 'Maggie'; Plus 2 More Updates!

Development News - March 25, 2021

ABC's Black Don't Crack & Maggie; and HBO Max's The Gordita Chronicles.






ABC's MAGGIE
  • Rebecca Rittenhouse will play the lead role in the comedy pilot written by Maggie Mull and Justin Adler. She previously starred in the Hulu limited series Four Weddings and a Funeral. She also had a recurring role on Hulu's The Mindy Project.
  • She will play Maggie, a real deal psychic whose visions of the future often complicate her present reality. Due to her psychic gift, she is intensely sensitive and gets a pummeling assault of energy from every person around her. As a result, she has put up emotional walls to protect herself. But underneath this layer of cynical defense, the real Maggie is a huge romantic with a big heart, who just wants to find a way to live what she deems a normal life with normal relationships and ultimately find love. With the help of her close-knit circle of friends and family, Maggie attempts to live like the rest of us do, creating the best future for herself with only the information of the present.
HBO MAX's THE GORDITA CHRONICLES
  • Diana Maria Riva, Juan Javier Cardenas, Savannah Nicole Ruiz, Noah Rico and Cosette Hauer have joined the cast of the comedy pilot starring Olivia Goncalves. Riva has recurred on Netflix's Dead to Me. Cardenas has recurred on CBS' S.W.A.T. and AMC's The Walking Dead. Rico has recurred on Nickelodeon's All That. Ruiz and Hauer are relative newcomers.
  • Riva will play Adela, Cucu's (Goncalves) mother.
  • Cardenas will play Victor, Cucu's father.
  • Ruiz will play Emilia, Cucu's older sister.
  • Rico will play Yosmel "Yoshy" Hernandez, a Cuban refugee and Cucu's first friend in Miami.
  • Hauer will play Ashley, a needy go-getter desperate to fit in, but nevertheless always sticks out.
ABC's BLACK DON'T CRACK
  • Essence Atkins and Tisha Campbell are set as the co-leads opposite Sherri Shepherd in the comedy pilot written by Regina Hicks. Tahj Mowry, Beth Grant and Isaiah Mustafa have also been cast today. Atkins starred for two seasons in NBC's Marlon and one season in OWN's Ambitions. Campbell starred for five seasons in FOX's Martin, five seasons in ABC's My Wife and Kids and two seasons in ABC's Dr. Ken. Mowry starred for six seasons in Freeform's Baby Daddy. Grant starred for six seasons in FOX/Hulu's The Mindy Project. Mustafa starred for three seasons in Freeform's Shadowhunters.
  • Atkins will play Nia Hillis Davis, a bougie, conservative politician's wife who has lost touch with her more fun-loving college self. Though she may have many cracks in her perfect facade, she goes to great pains to cover them up. While she may be perceived as uptight and snobbish, she's ultimately a lovable neurotic who is our voice of positivity, even if a lot of the times, she's not sure what's going on.
  • Campbell will play Tasha Marks, a hip and fabulous Atlanta restaurateur who starts trends instead of following them. She holds nothing back and is brutally honest (sometimes to a fault) with her friends, but has been avoiding a truth in her own life. She's achieved the perfect professional life and insists that she needs no man in her life to interfere with the career she's worked so hard to create.
  • Mowry will play Khalil Grant, Angela's (Shepherd) 20-something son. He is a recent college grad who is full of big ideas and big dreams, but has yet to get any of his start-up companies off the ground. A bit of a slow starter at life, he lives in his mother's basement and still relies on her to do his laundry and front him rent money. He is fiercely protective of his family and is gradually growing into a responsible adult.
  • Grant will play Nancy, Angela's sharp-tongued mother-in-law. She adores her grandson but is tougher on her daughter-in-law. She can be abrasive, demanding and unaware of her prejudices. While Nancy can be a thorn in Angela's side, the truth is they need each other. At the end of the day, the things they share - the loss of a husband, their love for Khalil - keep them from killing each other.
  • Mustafa will play Charles Daniel, the co-owner of Tasha's restaurant and bar in Atlanta. He is a former pro-football player who is handsome and oozes charm and swagger. He's full of stories from back in his glory days and is comfortable being the center of attention. He could be perceived as cocky, but he's ultimately the kind of dependable, good guy you want in your corner.