Monica Raymund isn’t leaving Hightown…
Starz has picked up the 33-year-old half-Dominican American actress’ Cape Cod-set drama Hightown for a second season.
The Lionsgate-backed cable network said that Raymund’s crime drama had set a new record for series premiere viewership across its digital platforms internationally.
The series, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Lionsgate Television, launched its eight-part run on May 17 and the renewal comes after the fourth episode aired.
Hightownfollows one woman’s journey to sobriety, overshadowed by an unfolding murder investigation. Raymund plays Jackie Quiñones, a hard-partying National Marine Fisheries Service agent, who has her life thrown into disarray when she discovers a body on the beach – another casualty of Cape Cod’s opioid epidemic. To deal with the trauma, Jackie takes the first steps toward sobriety, until she becomes convinced it’s up to her to solve the murder. James Badge Dale also stars along with Riley Voelkel, Shane Harper, Amaury Nolasco and Atkins Estimond.
Hightown is created and executive produced by Rebecca Cutter.
Raymund previously told Deadline she was really excited to star in her first cable drama.
“As much as I love network, I never had the opportunity to challenge myself doing cable television and I come from a very theatrical background so I like extremely complex stories. I like it messy and gritty, I don’t like cleanliness when it comes to storytelling so this was an opportunity to mess up my work and push myself,” she said. “For me to be able to play the lead, especially as a queer Latino woman, that is pretty cool.”
“Rebecca, Gary and Jerry delivered an elevated and well-executed drama that embodies all the hallmarks of a Starz premium series with its dynamic, edgy storytelling, multicultural cast and female leadership both in front of and behind the camera,” added Christina Davis, president of original programming. “Audiences are already deeply engaged with these flawed and complex characters and in a second season we will continue to dive deeper into the relationships between them amidst the shifting tides on the Cape.”