Shondaland Netflix Series ‘The Residence’ Adds Four to Cast (EXCLUSIVE)

Lena Headey will be traveling on the Oregon trail.

Game of Thrones alumna Lena Headey has been tapped to headline Kurt Sutter’s Western action drama series The Abandons at Netflix.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Jessica Chastain will star in the eight-episode limited series “The Savant” at Apple, Variety has learned. The series is inspired by a true story published in Cosmopolitan in August 2019. Exact plot details for the series are being kept under wraps, but the Cosmopolitan article tells the story of a real woman who has come to be known as “the Savant” as she infiltrates hate groups online to help stop large-scale public attacks. The series hails from Fifth Season and Anonymous Content. Melissa James Gibson (“Anatomy of a Scandal,” “The Americans”) will serve as writer, executive producer, and showrunner under her overall deal with Fifth Season. Matthew Heineman (“A Private War,” “Retrograde”) will direct and executive produce. Chastain will executive produce in addition to starring via Freckle Films. Kelly Carmichael of Freckle Films also executive produces along with Jessica Giles, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan. Brian Madden, senior VP of development for Hearst Magazines, will produce. Andrea Stanley, writer of the original Cosmopolitan feature, will consult.

Angelique Jackson Christina Milian continues her streak of rom-coms at Netflix with the upcoming holiday movie “Meet Me Next Christmas.” The project marks the actor and musician’s third collaboration with Netflix following her popular destination romances, 2021’s “Resort to Love” — which spent four weeks on the streamer’s global top 10 film list — and 2019’s “Falling Inn Love.” Milian will executive produce and star in “Meet Me Next Christmas,” playing Layla, who, in pursuit of a fairytale romance with the man of her dreams, must race through New York City to get her hands on the hottest ticket in town: the sold out Pentatonix Christmas Eve Concert.

Netflix might be landing the likes of Nicole Kidman and Dakota Fanning for a new limited series in development.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter The Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid series in the works at Amazon has found its showrunners. Variety has learned that Alex Metcalf has boarded the show, currently titled “Butch & Sundance,” as showrunner and executive producer. Series creators Kaz Firpo and Ryan Firpo will serve as co-showrunners and executive producers alongside Metcalf. The Firpos most recently wrote the screenplay for the Marvel film “Eternals.” Amazon has ordered the show straight-to-series. The show was first reported as being in development in September, with Regé-Jean Page attached to play Cassidy and Glen Powell playing Sundance. At that time, it was reported that deals for the show were not yet closed and discussions were ongoing.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter HBO Max is developing a drama series based on the life of Heidi Fleiss, Variety has learned exclusively. The untitled series hails from writer and executive producer Maggie Cohn, who most recently served as the co-showrunner on HBO Max’s critically acclaimed limited series “The Staircase.” Fleiss will serve as a consultant on the project. Emma Tillinger Koskoff (“Joker,” The Irishman”) of First Love Films will also executive produce, along with Alex Goldstone (“Dickinson”) for Anonymous Content, Bill Gerber (“Muhammed Ali,” “A Star Is Born”) of Gerber Pictures, and David Bernon, Paul Bernon, and Sam Slater of Burn Later Productions (“Support the Girls,” “Mile 22,” “Drinking Buddies”).

Selome Hailu “Beef” stars Steven Yeun and Ali Wong as two people involved in a road rage incident that spirals out of control and begins to consume their every waking moment. And despite that Yeun and Wong have no actual beef with each other, that anger began to consume them outside of the show, too — except in real life, it came in the form of hives. During a Q&A following the world premiere of “Beef” at South by Southwest, the actors were asked how they managed to decompress after performing such explosive anger on set. “Our bodies shut down,” Yeun said. “Steven and I both broke out in hives after the show. Mine was on my face. His was all over his body because he’s weak like that,” Wong said, to wide audience laughter. “It definitely took a toll on us, but we didn’t even realize until after the show ended. I mean, I won’t even talk about what happened to your elbow.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Halcyon Studios has brought on Phil Abraham to direct and executive produce the series “Beverly Hills Noir,” Variety has learned exclusively. Halcyon, a division of Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, is producing the show, which is based on “Gemstone” by James Ellroy. Per the official logline, the show “follows two female detectives as they are sucked into the vortex of power, greed, and cold-blooded conspiracy in one of the most aspirational cities in the world, Beverly Hills.” Ed Decter is writing the series and will also serve as executive producer and showrunner. Along with Decter and Abraham, Ellroy, Stewart Till, and Richard Potter also executive produce. No network or streaming service is currently attached to the project.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter “The Penguin” series at HBO Max has added Michael Zegen, James Madio, and Scott Cohen to its cast in recurring roles, Variety has learned exclusively. The three join a cast that includes series lead Colin Farrell, who will reprise the role of Oswald “The Penguin” Cobblepot from “The Batman, as well as Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Deirdre O’Connell, and Clancy Brown. HBO Max is not releasing character details for three new additions, but sources say that Zegen is set to play Alberto Falcone. Alberto is the son of Gotham City crime boss Carmine Falcone, who was played by John Turturro in “The Batman,” and the brother of Sofia Falcone, who will be played by Milioti in “The Penguin.” In the comics, Alberto takes credit for being the serial killer known as The Holiday Killer, who targets Gotham gangsters on a holiday each month.

Netflix has released the highly buzzed “Beef” trailer, which follows the story between two strangers engaging in a moment of road rage and the unbelievably chaotic and comedic aftermath.

Naman Ramachandran Indian production company Turning Point Productions is launching with a streaming series adaptation of Rob Sinclair’s bestselling thriller novel “Sleeper 13,” it was revealed on the sidelines of the 21st Hong Kong – Asia Film Financing Forum (HAF). The novel, published by Orion in 2018, follows a protagonist who is smuggled to the Middle East as a child, trained as one of the most elite insurgents of his generation and forced to do things no one should for a cause he couldn’t believe in. But as his brothers were preparing to kill, he was looking for a way out. On the eve of the deadliest coordinated attacks the world has ever seen, he finally has his chance and looks to break free and hunt down those who made him a monster.

BreAnna Bell Jason Ritter has signed on to join CBS’s “Matlock” pilot, Variety has learned. He’ll portray Julian, the son of the head of the firm, who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. However, he’s not to be underestimated. “Diligent and persistent with a lot to prove, he’s at odds with prioritizing his family and balancing his career. He always considers the good of the firm, even if it pushes the boundaries between his work and personal life,” reads the character’s description. Ritter joins previously announced cast members including Kathy Bates as Madeline Matlock, Skye P. Marshall as Olympia, David Del Rio as Billy, Leah Lewis as Sarah.

BreAnna Bell Garrett Hedlund has been cast in a recurring guest role in Taylor Sheridan’s forthcoming “Bass Reeves” series set at Paramount+, Variety has learned exclusively. He’ll portray Garrett Montgomery, a so-called posse man of the era who Bass hires for his riding know-how and expertise of the area. She joins previously announced stars including lead and executive producer David Oyelowo, and series regulars Lauren E. Banks, Demi Singleton, Forrest Goodluck and Barry Pepper. Dennis Quaid and Grantham Coleman will also appear in recurring roles. Hedlund can currently be seen in Paramount+’s “Tulsa King” and will next star in the film “The Tutor,” which is scheduled March 24th theater release. He recently completed production on the films “Desperation Road” opposite Mel Gibson and “The Marsh King’s Daughter,” co-starring Ben Mendelson and Daisy Ridley. His other credits include Lee Daniels’ “Mudbound,” “On the Road,” “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk,” “Mojave,” “Inside Llewyn Davis,” “Pan,” “Unbroken,” “Tron: Legacy,” and “Country Strong.”

Squid Game in 2021, Netflix scored another hit in the K-drama space with the dark fantasy drama series Hellbound. The show became as the streaming service’s most-watched show the week it debuted, besting other popular releases such as League Of Legends animated series Arcane and the second season of Tiger King.Based on show director Yeon Sang-ho’s own webtoon series of the same name, Hellbound is set in a world where apparitions appear before those supposedly guilty of wrongdoing, announcing ‘decrees’ of when they’d be condemned to hell.In the face of this revelation, two organisations – the cult-like New Truth Society fronted by Jung Jinsu (played in season 1 by Yoo Ah-in) and the militia-esque Arrowhead group – work together to gain power by leveraging on the fear of the populace and public demonstrations of sinners being sent to hell.Season one of Hellbound left viewers wanting answers about apparitions and decrees, with an unexpected cliffhanger that challenged the notion of what it means, within the show, to be sent to hell.

BreAnna Bell “Act Your Age” earns another win for Alyson Fouse and Bounce TV. The sitcom starring Kym Whitley, Tisha Campbell, and Yvette Nicole Brown opened to an audience of 2.14 million total viewers with its two-episode back-to-back premiere on March 4 on Bounce TV, according to figures from Nielsen. Thus, making it the most-watched half-hour series launch in Bounce history. The initial airing was also pushed with a special presentation on Bounce’s sister network, ION. “It’s the storytelling. It’s wonderful and I think there needs to be something said about how it really well represents black women in America today. That’s a real breath of fresh air,” said executive producer and David Hudson. “It’s fun, it’s funny, it’s engaging, it’s reflective. I think it has real broad appeal for a lot of women, men as well.”

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Shea Whigham has been cast in a recurring guest star role in the “Bass Reeves” series currently in production for Paramount+, Variety has learned. David Oyelowo stars in the series based on the life of the titular legendary law man. The series also stars Barry Pepper, Dennis Quaid, Forrest Goodluck, Lauren E. Banks, Grantham Coleman, and Demi Singleton. Per the official logline, the show “will bring the legendary lawman of the wild west to life. Reeves, known as the greatest frontier hero in American history, worked in the post-Reconstruction era as a federal peace officer in the Indian Territory, capturing over 3,000 of the most dangerous criminals without ever being wounded.”

David Jonsson (Industry), Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Spike Fearn (Aftersun) and newcomer Aileen Wu (Away from Home) have signed on to star alongside Cailee Spaeny and Isabela Merced in the new Alien film that Fede Alvarez (Evil Dead) is directing for 20th Century Studios, Deadline can confirm.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Demi Singleton is the latest addition to the cast of the “Bass Reeves” series at Paramount+, Variety has learned exclusively. Singleton will appear in the period drama as a series regular opposite series lead David Oyelowo, who will star as the titular legendary lawman. Additional cast members include Barry Pepper, Dennis Quaid, Forrest Goodluck, Lauren E. Banks, and Grantham Coleman. Per the official logline, the show “will bring the legendary lawman of the wild west to life. Reeves, known as the greatest frontier hero in American history, worked in the post-Reconstruction era as a federal peace officer in the Indian Territory, capturing over 3,000 of the most dangerous criminals without ever being wounded.”

Arnold Schwarzenegger is back, this time in a Netflix TV show. Schwarzenegger stars in “Fubar,” a new action-comedy series where he plays a father whose relationship with his daughter is tested since they’re both CIA operatives.