Stephanie Beatriz could be getting her big break in television—with a little help from Ellen DeGeneres…
The Latina actress, who has spent several seasons with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, has been added as a cast regular on ABC‘s comedy pilot The Smart One, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
From Warner Bros. Television, the comedy pilot—starring Portia de Rossi and Malin Akerman— revolves around Jude, a brilliant and successful woman (de Rossi) who begrudgingly goes to work for Candy, her less-brainy but more popular sister — a former beauty queen, weather girl and now big-city mayor (Akerman).
Beatriz, who guest starred on TNT’s The Closer, will play Natalee, Candy’s whip smart yet ditsy hairdresser who helped get the dim bulb elected mayor. She’s described as a cross between Octavia Spencer from The Help and Jennifer Coolidge from Legally Blonde.
Beatriz joins a cast that also includes David Arquette and Jean Smart.
Donald Todd will pen the project and executive produce alongside Lauren Corrao and de Rossi’s wife, DeGeneres.
I saw her perform at OSF and by god was she good.