Claire Danes Joins Jesse Eisenberg, Lizzy Caplan in FX Limited Series ‘Fleishman Is in Trouble’

Peacock has given a straight-to-series order to A Friend of the Family, a true-crime limited drama about the Jan Broberg kidnapping case, from Nick Antosca (The Act, Channel Zero) and UCP, with Oscar winner Anna Paquin, Jake Lacy, Colin Hanks and Lio Tipton attached to star. Eliza Hittman (Never Rarely Sometimes Always) is set to direct and executive produce multiple episodes, including the pilot.

FX has set its cast for Retreat, a limited series from The OA creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij. Oscar nominee Clive Owen (Closer, The Knick) Harris Dickinson (Beach Rats, The King’s Man), Alice Braga (Queen of the South, The Suicide Squad), Jermaine Fowler (Coming 2 America, Judas & the Black Messiah), Joan Chen (The Last Emperor, Twin Peaks), Raul Esparza (Law & Order: SVU, Candy), Edoardo Ballerini (The Sopranos, Dinner Rush) Pegah Ferydoni (Turkish for Beginners, Drama Women Without Men), Ryan J. Haddad (The Politician, Hi, Are You Single?) and Javed Khan (The Bay, Gangs of London) join Corrin in the series, along with previously announced Marling.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAndrew Rannells has been cast in a recurring role in the upcoming Hulu limited series “Immigrant.”The darkly comedic series tells the true story of Somen “Steve” Banerjee (Kumail Nanjiani), the Indian-American entrepreneur who started Chippendales. Along with Nanjiani and Rannells, the cast also includes Murray Bartlett and Annaleigh Ashford.Rannells will play the rich kid investor in Chippendales New York and the love interest of Bartlett, who stars as producer-choreographer Nick De Noia.Rannells’ recent onscreen roles include “Black Monday” at Showtime and “Girls5Eva” at Peacock.

Andrew Rannells has been tapped for a recurring role in Hulu limited series Immigrant (working title), starring Kumail Nanjiani, Annaleigh Ashford and Murray Bartlett, from Pam & Tommy creator Robert Siegel.

Peacock has given a straight-to-series order to Apples Never Fall, a limited series based on Liane Moriarty’s (Big Little Lies, Nine Perfect Strangers) bestselling novel.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterLiane Moriarty’s novel “Apples Never Fall” is being adapted into a limited series at Peacock, Variety has learned exclusively.In a competitive situation, Peacock has won the rights to the book, which was published in September 2021, and given it a straight-to-series order. Since its debut, the book has sold over one million copies.The series centers on the Delaneys, who from the outside appear to be an enviably contented family.

HBO has closed a deal for Doomsday Machine, a limited series about Facebook starring Emmy winner Claire Foy as embattled tech giant COO Sheryl Sandberg and executive producing as well. Anonymous Content (Spotlight, Mr. Robot) and wiip (Mare of Easttown, Dickinson), which took the project to the marketplace in October, will co-produce with HBO.

EXCLUSIVE: The remarkable story of a Dutch woman who risked her life to shelter Anne Frank’s family from the Nazis for more than two years and then preserved Anne’s diary, is the subject of A Small Light, a National Geographic limited series ordered by Disney+. The project comes from Grey’s Anatomy alums Joan Rater and Tony Phelan, Susanna Fogel (The Flight Attendant), ABC Signature and Keshet Studios.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Lucifer” star Tom Ellis has joined the cast of Hulu’s Sterling K. Brown-led “Washington Black” limited series in the role of steam-punk inventor Christopher “Titch” Wilde.Described as an epic nine-episode adventure series based on Esi Edugyan’s novel of the same name, “Washington Black” follows the extraordinary 19th-century adventures of George Washington “Wash” Black, an 11-year-old boy on a Barbados sugar plantation who must flee after a shocking death threatens to upend his life.

Adam Brody is joining the cast!

The O.C. alum Adam Brody is set to star alongside Jesse Eisenberg, Lizzy Caplan and Claire Danes in FX’s Fleishman is in Trouble, a limited series adaptation of Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s bestselling debut novel of the same name, which will stream on Hulu. Maxim Jasper Swinton (Halston) and Meara Mahoney Gross (Don’t Look Up) will also be featured in the series.

EXCLUSIVE:  Tim Allen won’t be the only one suiting up as North Pole royalty for Disney+. Lost alum Elizabeth Mitchell will also return to the world of The Santa Clause to reprise her role as Carol, aka Mrs. Claus, for the streamer’s upcoming limited series. The project comes from Last Man Standing creator Jack Burditt, who serves as showrunner.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAdam Brody, Maxim Jasper Swinton, and Meara Mahoney Gross have all been cast in the upcoming FX limited series “Fleishman Is in Trouble,” Variety has learned.The trio joins previously announced cast members Jesse Eisenberg, Lizzy Caplan, and Claire Danes. Based on Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s novel of the same name, the series centers on recently separated forty-something Toby Fleishman (Eisenberg), who dives into the brave new world of app-based dating with the kind of success he never had dating in his youth, before he got married at the tail-end of medical school.

EXCLUSIVE: HBO may have found their next murder mystery limited series obsession. In a competitive situation, the premium network, partnered with Bruna Papandrea’s Made Up Stories and Endeavor Content, have landed the rights to Australian comedian and author Benjamin Stevenson’s new novel, Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone. It will be developed as a limited series.

EXCLUSIVE: Emmy winner Claire Danes is set to star opposite Jesse Eisenberg and Lizzy Caplan in FX’s Fleishman is in Trouble, a limited series adaptation of Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s bestselling debut novel of the same name, which will stream on Hulu.

Nick Stahl has been cast as a series regular opposite Demián Bichir, in Let the Right One In, Showtime’s vampire drama series, from Away creator Andrew Hinderaker, who serves as showrunner; Seith Mann, who directed the pilot and additional episodes; and Tomorrow Studios. The series also stars Anika Noni Rose, Grace Gummer, Madison Taylor Baez, Kevin Carroll, Ian Foreman and Jacob Buster.

Al Roker Entertainment has optioned the New York Times best-selling novel The Personal Librarian (Berkley/Penguin) from authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray for a limited series.

Tony winner Annaleigh Ashford has been tapped to star opposite Kumail Nanjiani in Hulu limited series Immigrant (working title), from Pam & Tommy creator Robert Siegel.

“Mom, do you think I can be political?” asks teenage YouTube musician Ziggy Katz (a wide-eyed Finn Wolfhard) to his uptight mom Evelyn (the consistently stellar Julianne Moore). There’s no shortcut to sounding smart, she replies, you have to do the work.