Stephanie Beatriz to Star in the Sci-Fi Series “The Disco Ball”

Stephanie Beatriz is heading to the disco…

The 42-year-old Colombian-Bolivian Argentine actress will star in the sci-fi series The Disco Ball.

Stephanie BeatrizBeatriz will star opposite Costa Ronin in the series from online storytelling platform StoryCo, with Halo showrunner Kyle Killen attached.

In the sci-fi-series, Beatriz will play Captain Alma Cooke, who leads a team of astronauts thrust into a journey to save the multiverse. Ronin also stars, with Lionel Boyce, Baron Ryan and Teddy Sears in supporting roles.

The first chapter launches today as the debut project on StoryCo, a collaborative online platform that allows creatives to create multimedia stories and build communities around them.

A multi-chapter arc will unfold over the next several months, with creators from around the world collaborating with Killen and others to expand and build on the story.

The Disco Ball will be produced through in part through ‘Co/Create’ initiatives, where artists, musicians, actors, producers, writers and other creatives are invited to key elements of the story alongside the core team. That work is integrated into the main narrative and rewarded with upfront compensation and a share of future profits through StoryCo’s ‘Profit Points’ system, which rewards meaningful contributions.

So far, the backstory of the antagonist was illustrated by Nigerian art student Okereafor Aanu, a supplementary character was developed by New York high school teacher Aaron Arm, a voice performance is provided by retired Disney Imagineer staffer Roy Berglund and a song that will feature in a later chapter comes from Arizona synth pop duo Fuzzle.

Killen is the writer. He’s known for creating Fox’s Lone Star, NBC’s Awake and ABC’s Mind Games during the 2010s. He also co-wrote the Jodie Foster-directed 2011 film The Beaver and Kevin and Michael Goetz’s Scenic Route.

More recently, he was showrunner and executive producer on Paramount+ sci-fi series Halo, and created Fox pilot The Last Police, which was passed over last year as we revealed at the time. Next year, he’s set to be showrunner on Netflix’s Man on Fire.

The Disco Ball represents a new way to engage with fictional characters and worlds,” said Killen. “It’s an experience that leans into modern technology and all the powerful ways in which it can seamlessly aid global community, human connection, and the sharing of ideas.”

Beatriz is best known for her work on television in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. She has also starred in Twisted Metal and the Disney film Encanto.

FX/Hulu Renew “The Bear,” Starring Liza Colón-Zayas, for Third Season

Liza Colón-Zayas is grin and bear-ing it!

FX/Hulu have ordered a third season of their acclaimed restaurant drama series The Bear, starring the 51-year-old Puerto Rican actress and playwright.

Liza Colón-Zayas,The series, which was created by Christopher Storer, stars Jeremy Allen White as Carmy Berzatto.

The first season of The Bear follows Carmy, a young chef from the fine-dining world who comes home to Chicago to run his family sandwich shop after his brother’s suicide. Carmy must balance the realities of small-business ownership, his strong-willed and recalcitrant kitchen staff and his strained familial relationships, all while grappling with the impact of his brother’s death.

Season two follows the gang as they transform their grimy sandwich joint into a next-level spot. As they stripped the restaurant down to its bones, the crew undertook transformational journeys of their own, each forced to confront the past and reckon with who they want to be in the future.

Unsurprisingly, it turned out the only thing harder than running a restaurant was opening a new one, and the team had to juggle the insane bureaucracy of permits and contractors with the beauty and creative agony of menu planning. The transition brought a newfound focus on hospitality as well. As the entire staff was forced to come together in new ways, pushing the boundaries of their abilities and relationships, they also learned what it means to be in service, both to diners and each other.

In addition to Storer and Colon-Zayas, who portrays Tina, the series also stars Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri, Abby Elliott and Lionel Boyce.

Matty Matheson was also upped for season 2, while Edwin Lee Gibson, Corey Hendrix, Oliver Platt, Jon Bernthal, José Cervantes, Richard Esteras, Carmen Christopher, Chris Witaske, Joel McHale, Jamie Lee Curtis, Gillian Jacobs, Robert Townsend, Molly Gordon, Alex Moffat, Ricky Staffieri, Mitra Jouhari and Maura Kidwell recur.

Storer executive produces alongside Joanna Calo, Hiro Murai, Josh Senior and Matheson. It is produced by FX Productions.

Season one, which premiered in June 2022, is currently nominated for 13 Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Comedy Series at the awards planned for January. The second season, which aired from June 2023, consisted of ten episodes, up from eight in season one. The episode order for season three has not been revealed.

The Bear, which wowed audiences in its first season only to achieve even greater heights in season two, has become a cultural phenomenon,” said Nick Grad, President, FX Entertainment. “We’re so proud to partner with Christopher Storer, Joanna Calo, Josh Senior, and the rest of the creative team, as well as the brilliant cast led by Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. What they and the crew have done is truly remarkable, and we and our partners at Hulu join fans in looking forward to the next chapter in the story of The Bear.