ABC has picked up the music-themed drama Queens, starring the 42-year-old Puerto Rican actress, to series for the 2021-22 season.
The series is headlined by Brandy, Eve, Naturi Naughton, Velazquez and Pepi Sonuga.
Estranged and out-of-touch, four women in their 40s reunite for a chance to recapture their fame and regain the swagger they had as the Nasty Bitches—their ‘90s group that made them legends in the hip-hop world.
Queens stars Eve as Brianna aka Professor Sex, Naturi Naughton as Jill aka Da Thrill, Velazquez as Valeria aka Butter Pecan, Taylor Selé as Eric Jones, Pepi Sonuga as Lil Muffin and Brandy as Naomi aka Xplicit Lyrics.
Zahir McGhee, Sabrina Wind and Tim Story are executive producers.
The series is produced by ABC Signature, a part of Disney Television Studios. The pilot episode is written by McGhee and directed by Tim Story.
The 40-year-old Mexican actor/producer has been cast as the lead in Showtime’s thriller drama pilot Hombre, which hails from BAFTA nominee Jonas Cuarón (Gravity).
Garcia Bernal, who won a Golden Globe for his lead role in Mozart in the Jungle, will star alongside Marisé Alvarez (The Vessel),Greg Grunberg(A Star Is Born), Pepi Sonuga (Famous In Love), Adriana Santos(Taken) and newcomer Noah Reyes in the pilot, which is set to begin production at the end of April in Los Angeles.
Created by Cuarón, who also will direct the pilot, Hombre centers on a Mexican-American family man named Marcos Osuna (Bernal) who is living undocumented in the United States. When his wife Leticia is detained by ICE, Marcos, both desperate and resourceful, goes to unprecedented lengths to get her back. The project is an emotional thriller about a man enmeshed in a dangerous double life, contending with powerful forces set on thwarting his unwavering desire to unite his family.
Hombre is a co-production between Showtime and Makeready.
Alvarez will play Marcos’ smart and selfless wife Leticia, whose detention by ICE proves to be the ultimate test on her marriage and close-knit family.
Sonuga will play Adanna, a kind-hearted undocumented immigrant from Nigeria who works with Marcos at a motel. Grunberg will play Norm, a friendly and well-intended ICE trainee.
Santos will play Leticia’s sister Teresa. Reyes will play Marcos’ and Leticia’s pre-adolescent son Anthony.
Alvarez recently appeared in the feature films The Vessel and Imprisoned, and the Spanish mini-series En el corredor de la muerte. She had her first notable role in the Puerto Rican feature Maldeamores, and starred in Steve Soderbergh’s Che: Part One and Che: Part Two.
Santos can be seen in the upcoming filmNight Swim directed by Victoria Riverapremiering at Tribeca. Her television credits include Taken, Sweetbitter andDaredevil.
Reyes is a newcomer from Ontario, California. Hombre marks his first television series regular role.
Freeform will make all 10 premiere-season episodes of Famous in Love, starring the 19-year-old half-Cuban American actress/singer, available on its digital platforms on April 18, the same night as the Marlene King series’ television debut.
Based on Rebecca Serle’s novel, Famous in Love stars Thorne as college student Paige, who lands a starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster. Also in the cast: Carter Jenkins, Charlie Depew, Georgie Flores, Niki Koss, Pepi Sonuga, Keith Powers and Perrey Reeves.
The series was developed by King and Serle. King exec produces along with Christopher Fife, Miguel Arteta, Melissa Carter and Dan Farah, and Serle is co-executive producer. Warner Horizon Television is producing with Long Lake Media, Farah Films and Carmina Productions.
Freeform says the digital binge strategy proved successful for its series Beyondin January, generating more than 13 million starts across digital platforms to date “with 87% of bingers finishing the series within one week.”
Famous in Love will have its linear premiere at 9:00 pm ET on Tuesday, April 18, following the final-season premiere of Pretty Little Liars. The new show will be available that night on such digital platforms as the Freeform app, Freeform.com, On Demand and Hulu.
Freeform has given a series order to Famous In Love, starring the 18-year-old half-Cuban American actress/singer.
Based on Rebecca Serle’s romantic novel, the drama pilot centers on Paige (Thorne), an ordinary college student who gets her big break after auditioning for the starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster. She must learn how to navigate her new star-studded life and undeniable chemistry with her two co-leads while discovering the highs and lows that come with being the new It Girl in town.
The series pickup comes a year after the project was bought for fast-track development by Freeform (then ABCFamily). It was ordered to pilot in October.
Written by Serle and I. Marlene King, executive producer/co-showrunner of Freeform’s flagship drama series Pretty Little Liars,Famous In Love also stars Carter Jenkins, Jesse Henderson, Keith Powers, Niki Koss, Georgie Flores, Perrey Reeves, Pepi Sonuga and Mark Valley.
King, Miguel Arteta, who directed the pilot, and Dan Farah are executive producers, and Serle is co-executive producer.
Famous In Love joins Freeform drama pilots GuiltandBeyond, which were picked up to series in November.
Thorne, who has a television history with Disney having starred on the Disney Channel series Shake It Up, is a fan of Serle’s book, calling it “a must-read for anyone curious about life and love behind the scenes” in a quote featured on the book cover.
