The 53-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress will star in one of Lifetime’s highly anticipated “Ripped from the Headlines” films this fall.
Ortiz, best known for her work on Ugly Betty, will star alongside Jasmine Vega and Sheila E in Nobody Dumps My Daughter.
The original television movie will premiere on October 12th at 8/7c.
In Nobody Dumps My Daughter, after Jimmy breaks up with Theresa (Vega), her overbearing mother, Mary (Ortiz), becomes obsessed with mending their relationship after learning that Jimmy took her daughter’s virginity. Determined to reunite the couple, Mary does everything she can to convince Jimmy to change his mind… including bribing him. When her tactics fail, Mary becomes desperate and her meddling ways turn to murderous when she enlists the services of a fortune teller named Anna (Sheila E.) and a hitman to murder Jimmy in an attempt to reclaim her daughter’s purity.
The Lifetime Original is produced by Lighthouse Pictureswith Gemma Martini, Jamie Goehring and Jameson Parker serving as executive producers. Stan Brooks directs from a script by Richard Blaney & Gregory Small.
Jimena Madrid’s heartbreaking immigration story is headed to the small screen…
Lifetime has given a green light to Torn From Her Arms, an original movie from Ozy Media, inspired by the separation of the six-year-old Salvadoran child from her mother at the U.S. border due to the Donald Trump administration’s zero-tolerance family separation policy.
The made-for-television movie, which stems from Ozy Media’s development partnership with A+E Networks, is part of Lifetime’s Ripped from the Headlines franchise inspired by news and true events. Originally covered by Ozy’s reporting arm, Torn From Her Arms marks Ozy’s first foray into scripted programming and an expansion of its television catalog.
Per Lifetime, Torn from Her Arms is the timely story of Cindy and Jimena Madrid, a mother and daughter who fled violence in El Salvador, only to be separated at the U.S. border. Detained in different centers, Cindy and Jimena’s story gained national attention when the audiotape of Jimena crying for her mother was leaked, helping to alert the world to what was happening to undocumented immigrant families at the border. The movie shines a spotlight on the harsh child separation policies in place as part of the zero-tolerance policy and the struggle to reunite families.
Torn From Her Arms is written by Tawnya Bhattacharya and Ali Laventhol. Lifetime and Ozy Media are currently searching for a director and casting for the movie.
The 2020 Ripped from the Headlines winter slate was seen by over 25.1 million total viewers, according to Nielsen Live+7.
The 49-year-old half-Mexican American Spanish-born actor/producer and his wife Kelly Ripa have signed a deal with Lifetime to produce two new movies for the network’s Ripped from the Headlines slate via their Milojo Productions banner.
Consuelos, Ripa and Albert Bianchini will serve as executive producers for the untitled projects, which are set to debut in 2021..
“Kelly and Mark have been important voices in popular culture for the past twenty years and we are so incredibly pleased to have them become a part of the Lifetime family,” said Paul Buccieri, Group President, A+E Networks. “We look forward to seeing their creative vision brought to life through these projects.”
The network’s 2020 Ripped from the Headlines slate has been a ratings boon for Lifetime. Stolen By My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story, Chris Watts: Confessions of a Killer, Poisoned Love: The Stacey Castor Story, Neighbor in the Window, andYou Can’t Take My Daughter reached more than 25 million total viewers, from January – April on Lifetime & LMN1, according to Nielsen Live+7.
“I am beyond thrilled to welcome Kelly and Mark and their company into the Lifetime family. We feel like Kelly and Mark have our same sensibilities and instincts for good storytelling,” said Tanya Lopez, EVP of Movies, Limited Series & Original Movie Acquisitions, Lifetime & LMN. “We know our ripped from the headlines slate will be energized by their enthusiasm and we all look forward to bringing these timely stories to their fans.”
Milojo Productions, which has developed and produced for networks including Bravo, Logo, VH1, E!,CMT, HGTV, WeTV, TLC and Discovery, has produced the Emmy-nominated documentary The Streak for ESPN, and critically acclaimed documentary Off The Rezfor TLC, both which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. The company has been involved in such projects as Masters of Reception, Homemade Millionaire, Dirty Soap, Cheer, Secret Guide To Fabulous, My Diet Is Better Than Yours, Secret Guide to Summer, Fire Island, and the New Now Next Voteelection specials with Wanda Sykes.
Milojo is currently in production onFamily Reboot, a docuseries for Disney+ and Exhumed, a true-crime series for Oxygen.
“As longtime true crime fans, there is nothing more thrilling than tuning into a Lifetime original movie,” Kelly and Mark added. “We are so excited to be working with Paul, Tanya, and their incredibly talented team to bring these Ripped from the Headlines stories to the screen.”
The 38-year-old half-Cuban American actress will star in the Lifetime original movie, The Neighbor in the Window.
Part of the network’s true story-based Ripped from the Headlines slate for 2020, the movie centers on a suburban wife who finds herself and the security of her family threatened by another seemingly friendly neighborhood mom.
The Neighbor in the Window will premiere at 8:00 pm ET on February 8.
Here are the film’s details:
The Neighbor in the Window (Premieres 8 p.m. February 8)
When upbeat, outgoing Karen (Sigler), her husband Scott and their young son relocate to Washington for Scott’s job, Karen looks forward to starting a new life. She soon meets Lisa (Jenn Lyon), her beautiful charming neighbor and quickly bond. But Lisa soon starts lying to Karen, and about Karen to others. Lisa cleverly sets herself up as Karen’s victim, until every aspect of Karen’s new life starts to unravel. Karen doesn’t realize how desperate and cunning Lisa is—until things come to a shocking head. The Neighbor in the Window is from writers Karen Stillmanand Margaux Froley, inspired by the book False Victimby Kathie Truitt. The Neighbor in the Window is produced by A+E Studios and Front Street Productions. Nancy Bennett executive produces, while Menhaj Hudadirects.
Sigler, best known for her work on HBO’s The Sopranos, most recently appeared on Magnum P.I. Her other credits include Guys with Kids, Entourage, Ugly Betty and the TV movie Call Me: The Rise and Fall of Heidi Fleiss.
Ortiz, best known for her work on Ugly Betty, will star alongside Jasmine Vega and Sheila E in Nobody Dumps My Daughter.
