TV Show News

TV Casting: MADOFF, SUPERGIRL, Elizabeth Mitchell & Goran Visnjic in CROSSING LINES

Elizabeth Mitchell Goran Visnjic

Madoff, Supergirl, Crossing Lines, and other TV productions have made recent TV show casting, TV movie casting, and TV directing news. These shows and movies air on ABC, CBS, and ITV.

Life in Pieces (CBS)

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Thomas Sadoski is set as a lead opposite Colin Hanks and Betsy Brandt in Life in Pieces…Also cast in the pilot, written by Justin Adler, is Angelique Cabral (Enlisted)…Sadoski plays middle sibling Matt Short who can’t catch a break, the most recent being a failed career that has forced him back home with his parents…Cabral plays Colleen, the woman Matt has just fallen in love with who is stuck in a messy break up with her ex-fiancé.

Dianne Wiest and Zoe Lister Jones are set to co-star…in Life in Pieces…Wiest plays the matriarch Joan Short, who adores her family and would do absolutely anything for them — as long she agrees with it. Jones plays Greg Short’s (Hanks) wife Jen, a woman used to being in control who now has a baby and finds for the first time she’s not.

Untitled Dan Savage comedy pilot

Mad Men‘s Jay R. Ferguson is set for a lead role in the ABC/ABC Studios untitled Dan Savage comedy pilot.

Written by David Windsor and Casey Johnson loosely based on the life of gay activist and author Dan Savage, the single-camera project revolves around the O’Neals, a seemingly perfect All-American family. When the youngest son comes out of the closet, all the family secrets are revealed and the family proves to be quite typical and not so perfect. Ferguson, will play the father, Pat O’Neal, a good-natured, affable cop with the Chicago police department.

Maigret Sets A Trap (ITV)

Maigret’s Dead Man (ITV)

Rowan Atkinson (Bean; Johnny English) will star as Georges Simenon’s iconic French detective Jules Maigret in two stand-alone feature-length dramas for ITV, Maigret Sets A Trap and Maigret’s Dead Man, it was announced today.

Stewart Harcourt (Love & Marriage, Treasure Island, Marple) has written the script.

Telenovela (NBC)

Jose Moreno Brooks (MTV’s One Bad Choice), a former semi-pro soccer player-turned-actor, has been cast as a series regular opposite Eva Longoria in NBC’s 13-episode single-camera comedy series Telenovela…Brooks…plays Gael Garnica, a masculine soap star who happens to be gay, married and not in the closet. He is one of Ana’s best friends. Jencarlos Canela and Diana Maria Riva co-star.

LFE (CBS)

Ana Kayne (Rescue Me) has been cast in CBS’ medical drama pilot LFE…Kayne…plays Mae, a quirky, lovable every-girl who is determined to be a good person and live a good life, but sometimes finds it difficult, despite her best efforts. She is the male lead’s ex-girlfriend.

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New World (HBO)

HBO’s long-gestating period drama project from Orange Is the New Black creator Jenji Kohan has been given an official pilot green light, with Gus Van Sant set to direct.

Co-written by Kohan, Bruce Miller (Alphas) and Tracy Miller, the project, titled New World, is described as a provocative period drama that explores the circumstances around one of the most compelling chapters in American history where intolerance and repression set neighbor against neighbor and led a town to mass hysteria.

Multi-camera comedy pilot (NBC)

Eddie Cibrian (Third Watch), Cougar Town‘s Josh Hopkins, The Exes‘ Donald Faison and Rory Scovel (Ground Floor) have been cast as the male leads in NBC’s multi-camera comedy pilot

The project…is loosely based on [Monica Potter]’s life and stars the actress as Bridget, a woman who juggles her busy family life as well as her three ex-husbands, which proves to be difficult when she starts dating again.

Rory Scovel…will play Jason, Bridget’s first ex-husband, a slick professional gambler. Faison plays Bridget’s second ex-husband, the very earnest Kevin, who is positive and upbeat at all times, and a staunch protector of the environment who is also “accidentally” extremely wealthy. Scovel plays Robert, Bridget’s third ex-husband. A pompous writer and college professor, Robert went to Harvard and can’t wait to let everyone know it. Hopkins plays Tom, a veterinarian in the midst of mutual attraction with Bridget, an animal lover.

Untitled NBA buddy comedy pilot (ABC)

Jami Gertz has signed on for another ABC/ABC Studios single-camera comedy project: the untitled NBA buddy comedy pilot…Gertz will co-star opposite Skylar Astin in the pilot, written/executive produced by Casey Johnson and David Windsor. The NBA project is a buddy comedy about Mo, an NBA rookie who doesn’t speak English, and Jason, a translator who doesn’t speak basketball. Gertz plays Jason’s good-natured and supportive mother.

Endgame (NBC)

Strike Back star Philip Winchester has been cast as the lead of NBC drama pilot Endgame…Described as a high-octane thriller set in the high-stakes world of Las Vegas, it centers on Alex (Winchester), a former intelligence officer turned security expert who is drawn into a mysterious conspiracy that forces him to complete a series of heroic challenges in order to save innocent lives.

Untitled drama from Jenna Bans (ABC)

Liam James…has landed a key role in the untitled ABC/ABC Studios drama from Jenna Bans. It follows the return of a politician’s young son, Adam Warren (James), who was presumed dead after disappearing over a decade earlier. Having been gone for so long, he maintains much of the behavior and mannerisms of an 8-year-old boy, which is unsettling and heartbreaking at the same time. But as the mysterious young man is welcomed back into his community, the neighbor sitting in jail for his murder is released and the cop responsible is forced to re-examine what truly happened so many years ago.

Ash Vs Evil Dead (Starz)

Jill Marie Jones has been set as a lead opposite Bruce Campbell in Starz’s “Ash Vs Evil Dead”

The plot: After the grisly murder of her partner, disgraced Michigan State Trooper Amanda Fisher (Jones) sets out to find our anti-hero Ash (original franchise star Bruce Campbell) and prove his responsibility for the crime. But as she soon learns, Ash and his cohorts may be mankind’s only hope against the plague of Evil Dead.

Evil Dead co-hatcher Sam Raimi will direct the first episode he wrote with Ivan Raimi, Craig DiGregorio and Tom Spezialy.

Jessica Jones (Netflix)

Eka Darville (The Originals, Power Rangers R.P.M.), Erin Moriarty (The Kings of Summer, Red Widow) and Wil Traval (Red Widow, All Saints) are the latest additions to the 13-episode series

Darville plays Malcolm, a neighbor of Jessica’s whose own journey will intertwine with her quest in a surprising way. Moriarty is Hope, a young girl who becomes a client of Alias Investigations. Traval plays an NYPD cop who takes “protect and serve” very seriously.

Strange Calls (NBC)

Patrick Brammall…is set to reprise his role in the U.S. remake. The Aussie actor has been cast in the NBC comedy pilot Strange Calls…Written by Blake McCormick…it centers on an affable but down on his luck young police officer. He is transferred to a rural town where — with the help of a peculiar, elderly night watchman — he starts to realize the town has a bizarre supernatural underbelly. Brammall will reprise his role as Lloyd, a macho cop who made Sergeant at a young age, but is not quite as smart, tough or cool as he thinks he is. In fact, his flawless record and success as an officer are based on his philosophy of confronting the easy-to-solve crimes and pretending the not-so-easy ones never happened.

Fantasy Life (Fox)

Utkarsh Ambudkar (Pitch Perfect) is set as a regular opposite Kevin Connolly and Vanessa Williams in Fox’s multi-camera/hybrid pilot Fantasy Life, written by Tim McAuliffe…Ambudkar will play Max, an outgoing and sometimes embarrassingly obsequious IT guy at Fox Sports who is a fantasy football buff and longtime fan of Mitch’s. His dream in life is to be Mitch’s personal assistant, a job he eventually lands.

Doubt (CBS)

Dule Hill is…co-starring role in the CBS hourlong pilot Doubt. Also cast in the project is Kobi Libii. The two join Laverne Cox.

Doubt…centers on Sadie, a smart, chic, successful defense lawyer at a boutique firm who shockingly gets involved romantically with one of her clients who may or may not be guilty of a brutal crime. Hill will play Albert, Sadie’s law partner and close friend with a good sense of humor who is working with her on a very high-profile case, representing a member of a prominent New York family. Libii plays Nick, a smart, ambitious and enterprising recent law school graduate who is determined to work with the best criminal defense attorney in New York.

Love Is A Four Letter Word (NBC)

Rockmond Dunbar has booked…the male lead in the NBC drama pilot Love Is A Four Letter Word.

Dunbar will play half of the lead couple, Nick, a charismatic and charming ad agency entrepreneur whose first marriage to Julie, the mother of two of his children, broke up over his affair with Fiona, now his wife. Nick and Fiona have an open marriage, and Fiona takes full advantage of their “arrangement” — but through the years, Nick has always pined for Julie, the true love of his life.

Madoff (ABC)

Richard Dreyfuss is set to play the disgraced [Bernie Madoff] in the project…the mini chronicles the rise and spectacular fall of the imprisoned swindler and the $65 billion Ponzi scheme he concocted. Ben Robbins is the writer.

Blindspot (NBC)

Sullivan Stapleton is set as the male lead opposite Jaimie Alexander in the project

Stapleton will play FBI special agent Kurt Weller, the leader of an elite FBI unit. He is called in from a mission to investigate the woman — who has his name written on her back.

Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Broadchurch) has joined the NBC pilot Blindspot…Jean-Baptiste…will play the series regular role of FBI Assistant Director Bethany Mayfair, who heads the investigation.

Game of Silence (NBC)

Michael Raymond-James (Once Upon A Time) and Larenz Tate (Rush) are set to co-star opposite David Lyons in NBC’s drama pilot Game Of Silence…Game Of Silence centers on Jackson (Lyons), a rising attorney on the brink of success who could lose his perfectly crafted life when his long-lost childhood friends threaten to expose a dark secret from their violent past. Raymond-James…will play Gil, one of four childhood friends entangled in the conspiracy. Tate…is Tony, the peacemaker of the group who hangs out with Gil and helps him with his petty crime schemes.

Unveiled (NBC)

Stephan James is set for a lead role in Unveiled, NBC’s supernatural/spiritual drama pilot

Written by John Sakmar & Kerry Lenhart, Unveiled follows an ensemble of flawed guardian angels who intervene in the lives of those who find themselves facing crisis in an attempt to restore their faith and, often, save their lives. James plays Daniel Shepard, a rookie Guardian angel unfamiliar with human suffering, but striving to understand it. Overcome by a loving desire to help others, Daniel sometimes bends the rules for the greater good.

Dr. Del

John Hawkes is set to star in the pilot

Dr. Del follows Del Canyon (Hawkes) as he reluctantly returns to his small hometown to run his family’s apothecary, the only source for medical attention for hundreds of miles. The series will follow his emergence as the town healer while he grapples between his desire to distance himself from a painful past and his inability to turn his back on a community struggling to find its place in contemporary America.

Film writer John Sayles (The Spiderwick Chronicles) was brought in to pen the pilot, which [Katie Jacobs] will direct.

Taxi-22 (CBS)

Joining star John Leguizamo as regulars in the single-camera comedy project…are Chris Smith (Paranormal Activity 3)…Lenny Venito (The Neighbors) and Sahr Ngaujah (Last Resort). Smith will play Bobby’s (Leguizamo) son, Venito will play Dean, Bobby’s boss at the Yellow Cab Garage and Ngaujah is Valentine, a Nigerian cab driver who shares a taxi as well as a love hate relationship with Bobby (Leguizamo) at Yellow Cab.

Also set for the CBS TV Studios-produced pilot in guest starring/recurring roles are Jennifer Esposito (Blue Bloods), Rebecca Creskoff (Hung) and F. Murray Abraham (Homeland).

Crossing Lines

Elizabeth Mitchell and Goran Visnjic (ER) are set to star in the third season of Tandem Communications’ Europe-set action/crime drama, Crossing Lines. The two join Donald Sutherland as series leads and will fill a void left by original Crossing Lines star William Fichtner, who will not be returning for Season 3.

Crossing Lines revolves around a squad of European law enforcement officers — led in the first two seasons by Carl Hickman (Fitchner) — who battle the explosion of international crime that accompanied the opening of borders by the European Union.

Mitchell and Visnjic will play Carine Strand and Marco Corazza, new members of the elite team of officers investigating cross-border crimes. Additional new series regulars include Stuart Martin (Babylon) and Naomi Battrick (Waterloo Road). Sutherland will reprise his role as Michel Dorn. Also returning for Season 3 are Tom Wlaschiha and Lara Rossi.

Supergirl (CBS)

Laura Benanti has been cast in key recurring role in the CBS pilot Supergirl. She will play Alura Zor-El, the birth mother of Kara (Melissa Benoist). A strong noblewoman, Alura sends Kara to Earth to escape Krypton’s destruction. Her wisdom and guidance echoes across space and time, proving invaluable on Kara’s journey toward becoming Supergirl.

Mix (ABC)

Camille Guaty (Scorpion) has been cast as a series regular in ABC’s pilot Mix…Guaty…is the first person cast in the project and will play the eldest child in her family Lola, a perfectionist model-turned-photographer whose cool judgmental attitude keeps others at bay. She resents her younger half-sister Remy and devotes her energies to raising her recently adopted 9-year-old Ethiopian son.

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Source: Deadline

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Rollo Tomasi

Rollo Tomasi is a Connecticut-based film critic, TV show critic, news, and editorial writer. He will have a MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University in 2025. Rollo has written over 700 film, TV show, short film, Blu-ray, and 4K-Ultra reviews. His reviews are published in IMDb's External Reviews and in Google News. Previously you could find his work at Empire Movies, Blogcritics, and AltFilmGuide. Now you can find his work at FilmBook.
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