‘Muppets Mayhem’ Disney Plus Series Casts Tahj Mowry Opposite Lilly Singh (EXCLUSIVE)

Joe Otterson TV ReporterErika Christensen has been cast in the “Will Trent” pilot at ABC, Variety has learned.Christensen joins previously announced series lead Ramón Rodríguez in the drama pilot, which is based on Karin Slaughter’s bestselling “Will Trent” novel series.The show follows Special Agent Will Trent (Rodríguez) of the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI). Trent was abandoned at birth and endured a harsh coming-of-age in Atlanta’s overwhelmed foster care system.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterShowtime has formally greenlit the limited series “Fellow Travelers” starring Matt Bomer.Showtime has given the series an eight episode order. Variety exclusively reported the show was in the works at the premium cabler in September 2021.Based on the novel of the same name by Thomas Mallon, the series is described as an epic love story and political thriller, chronicling the volatile romance of two very different men who meet in the shadow of McCarthy-era Washington. Bomer will play handsome, charismatic Hawkins Fuller, who maintains a financially rewarding, behind-the scenes career in politics.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterBenjamin Bratt has been cast in the Natasha Lyonne-led Peacock series “Poker Face,” which hails from creator Rian Johnson.Variety has learned exclusively that Bratt is the latest addition to the rapidly expanding cast. Another recently announced cast members include Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Stephanie Hsu, and David Castañeda. Plot and character details for the series are being kept largely under wraps, though sources say the show will follow a procedural format and see Lyonne’s character working to solve different murders in each episode.Bratt most recently appeared opposite Rosario Dawson in the HBO Max limited series “DMZ,” which debuted in March on the streamer.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterIone Skye has joined the upcoming Netflix series “Beef” in a guest starring role, Variety has learned exclusively.The 10-episode dramedy series will be led by Steven Yeun and Ali Wong. It follows two people who find themselves involved in a road rage incident that begins to consume every thought and action of their lives.Netflix would not comment on the details of Skye’s character, but sources say she is a mysterious woman whose mere presence haunts one of the lead characters.Along with Yeun, Wong, and Skye, the cast for the series also includes Young Mazino, Joseph Lee, David Choe, and Patti Yasutake, while Maria Bello, Ashley Park, Justin H.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJustin Chon has signed on to direct and executive produce the upcoming Jason Momoa Apple series “Chief of War,” Variety has learned exclusively.The show was first reported as being set up at Apple earlier in April. Chon was in negotiations to join the series at that time, with his deal now officially closed. It is said to follow the epic telling of the unification and colonization of Hawaii from an indigenous point of view.Chon will direct and executive produce the first two episodes of the series.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Everything, Everywhere All at Once” star Stephanie Hsu has joined Natasha Lyonne in “Poker Face,” the Peacock series created by Rian Johnson.Hsu is the latest casting to be announced for the series. Variety exclusively reported that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is also set to appear on the show.Plot details for the series are being kept largely under wraps, though sources say the show will follow a procedural format and see Lyonne’s character working to solve different murders in each episode. Details on the character Hsu will play are also being kept under wraps.Hsu was most recently seen in the critically-acclaimed feature “Everything, Everywhere All at Once” opposite Michelle Yeoh. She also plays Mei in the popular Amazon series “The Marvelous Mrs.

Los Angeles. They were joined by their co-stars Anthony Ramos and Marc Maron ahead of the DreamWorks Animation film hitting theaters on April 22.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterBel Powley, Liev Schreiber, and Joe Cole are set to lead the limited drama series “A Small Light” at Disney Plus, Variety has learned.The eight-episode National Geographic series tells the true story of Miep Gies (Powley), who played a critical role in hiding Anne Frank and her family from the Nazis.20-something secretary Gies didn’t hesitate when her boss Otto Frank (Schreiber) asked her to hide him and his family during World War II. For the next two years, Miep, her husband Jan (Cole) and several other everyday heroes watched over the eight souls hiding in the secret annex.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series at Disney Plus has cast Walker Scobell in the lead role, Variety has learned exclusively.The series adaptation of the Rick Riordan book series was ordered at the streamer back in January. The live-action show tells the fantastical tale of the titular 12-year-old modern demigod (Scobell), who’s just coming to terms with his newfound supernatural powers when the sky god Zeus accuses him of stealing his master lightning bolt. Now Percy must trek across America to find it and restore order to Olympus.Percy is described as a smart and compassionate kid with a sharp sense of humor.

She’s doing it again. After her hit self-help book, How to Be a Bawse, made her a New York Times bestselling author in 2017, Lilly Singh has returned with her follow up, Be a Triangle: How I Went from Being Lost to Getting My Life into Shape — and she exclusively brought Us Weekly along for a day in her life as a successful author.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterWhoopi Goldberg is set to play Bird Woman in the upcoming Amazon series adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s “Anansi Boys.”The series follows Charlie Nancy (Malachi Kirby)—sometimes known as Fat Charlie (it was his father’s nickname for him; he’s not fat)—a young man who is used to being embarrassed by his estranged father (Delroy Lindo). But when his father dies, Charlie discovers that he was Anansi: Trickster God of stories. And he learns that he has a brother.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorYouTube comedy network and studio Smosh hired casting director and actor Lesley Wolff, who is joining the company as director of on-air talent.Wolff will report directly to Ian Hecox, Smosh’s co-founder and president Ian Hecox. In the role, she will oversee the current cast of Smosh, lead casting efforts including scouting for new talent, and develop partnerships with creators across the digital landscape.Wolff has operated her own boutique digital-focused casting company, Wolff Casting, catering to clients across digital, TV, film and advertising sectors.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterGeorge Lopez and Mayan Lopez’s NBC comedy pilot “Lopez vs. Lopez” has added three new cast members, Variety has learned exclusively.Selenis Levya, Brice Gonzalez, and Matt Shivley will star alongside the Lopezes in the multi-cam pilot.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJason Momoa is set to star in, write, and executive produce the drama series “Chief of War” for Apple, Variety has learned.The series follows the story of the unification and colonization of Hawaii from an indigenous point of view. Apple has given the show an eight-episode order.Momoa will write alongside Thomas Pa’a Sibbett. Both also serve as executive producers, as will Francis Lawrence, Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping, Erik Holmberg, and Doug Jung.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterDean Devlin’s new Syfy series “The Ark” has found its core cast members as production gets underway, Variety has learned exclusively.Christie Burke, Richard Fleeshman, Reece Ritchie, Stacey Read and Ryan Adams will all appear as series regulars in the show, which is now shooting at PFI Studios in Belgrade, Serbia. The show was first announced back in January.“The Ark” takes place 100 years in the future when planetary colonization missions have begun as a necessity to help secure the survival of the human race. The first of these missions on a spacecraft known as Ark One encounters a catastrophic event causing massive destruction and loss of life.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterElla Purnell has been cast in a lead role of the upcoming “Fallout” TV series at Amazon, Variety has learned.Like the video games on which it is based, the “Fallout” series is set in a world where the future envisioned by Americans in the late 1940s explodes upon itself through a nuclear war in 2077.Purnell joins previously announced cast member Walton Goggins in the series. As with Goggins, Amazon had no comment on the character Purnell would be playing.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe “Walker: Independence” pilot at The CW has cast Gabriela Quezada in a recurring guest star role, Variety has learned exclusively.The pilot is a prequel to the current CW series “Walker,” a reboot of “Walker, Texas Ranger.”  The one-hour drama pilot is set in the late 1800s and follows Abby Walker (Katherine McNamara), an affluent Bostonian whose husband is murdered before her eyes while on their journey out West. On her quest for revenge, Abby crosses paths with Hoyt Rawlins (Matt Barr), a lovable rogue in search of purpose.

Lilly Singh has made the members of a talented dance troupe very happy.