Michael Cimino is a pea in a pod(cast)…

The 20-year-old half-Puerto Rican actor and Love Victor star has joined the voice cast for Black Box, the upcoming scripted science fiction podcast from Reverb Podcasts and Soundproof Media.

Cimino joins an ensemble cast that includes Joel McHale, Brec Bassinger, Chosen Jacobs and Jacob Bertrand.

Described as an homage to Spielbergian ’80s adventure films, the podcast will follow four unwitting teenagers who stumble upon the wreckage of a crashed time machine and are thrust into the middle of a conspiracy that threatens to unhinge time itself.

Cimino, Bassenger, Jacobs and Bertrand play the lead teenagers, while McHale plays a brilliant scientist whose ego and ambition spiral down a villainous path. The audio drama is written and directed by Brian Siegele and produced by Siegele and Chase Kinser for emerging content studios Reverb Podcasts and Soundproof Media.

Recording for Black Box began in August, making the production among the first podcast projects approved by SAG-AFTRA for full cast studio recording in the COVID-19 era. The producers are said to have implemented rigorous testing and safety protocols in addition to building transparent barriers in the studio so the cast could record together in person.

Production is still in progress with additional casting being finalized now. The eight-episode first season is projected to premiere in early 2021.

“We wanted the performers to play off each other in a way that remote recording doesn’t allow, but also ensure a risk-free working space,” noted Siegele. “We are thankful to have been able to accomplish this with guidance from SAG-AFTRA and coordination from our incredible cast.”

Audio company Reverb was founded last year. Soundproof Media is a new content firm focused on audio, television and film projects