NBC Developing Drama Series Starring Jon Huertas Based on Candace Fox’s Novel “Fire with Fire”

Posted on March 13, 2025 by Tom Castaneda

Jon Huertas is returning to acting…

NBC is developing a drama starring the 55-year-old Puerto Rican actor, who will executive produce alongside The Rookie and The Recruit creator Alexi Hawley.

Wendy Mericle is writing the untitled project based on the novel Fire with Fire by bestselling author Candice Fox.

Executive producer Sherry Marsh acquired the rights to the book while under her deal at eOne. It comes from Lionsgate Television, where Hawley is under an overall deal, and Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Huertas and Mericle executive produce alongside Hawley, through Perfectman Pictures and Marsh for Marsh Entertainment. Perfectman’s Rachel Abarbanell will co-executive produce.

This is Huertas’ return to acting following a two-year break while focusing on directing, and to NBC where he starred on their smash hit series This Is Us in the series regular role of Miguel Rivas.

The official logline for the new project: When a pair of grieving parents hijack an LAPD forensics lab and threaten to start destroying evidence until the police find their missing daughter, an unlikely partnership between grizzled undercover cop Enrique Arroyo (Huertas) and rookie flame-out Lynette Lamb is forged as they race to solve this cold case before the situation explodes.

If the show goes to series, Huertas will be one of the growing number of Latino leads currently on TV alongside George Lopez in NBC’s Lopez vs. Lopez, Ramon Rodriguez on ABC’s Will Trent, Manuel Garcia Rulfo in Netflix’s The Lincoln Lawyer, Eugenio Derbez in Apple’s Acapulco and Diego Luna in the Disney+ series Star Wars: Andor.

Huertas is best known for his roles in HBO’s Generation Kill, ABC’s Castle and the Emmy-winning series This Is Us. He is developing the new show with his longtime manager Marsh and bringing it to his longtime collaborator Hawley.

Apple TV+ Renews Michaela Jaé Rodriguez’s “Loot” for Third Season

Posted on July 16, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Michaela Jaé Rodriguez has more loot in her future…

Apple has renewed Loot, starring the 33-year-old half-Puerto Rican Golden Globe-winning actress and lead/executive producer Maya Rudolph, for a third season.

The cast was reportedly informed about the renewal about a month ago.

Season 3 will pick up after the Season 2 finale that saw Molly Wells (Rudolph) and her trusted and unhinged assistant Nicholas (Joel Kim Booster) board Molly’s private jet following her awkward exchange with her will-they, won’t-they colleague Arthur (Nat Faxon). Where will the PJ land? Season 3 will continue to follow the antics of the beloved group of misfits at The Wells Foundation.

In addition to Rudolph, Rordriguez, Booster and Faxon, the ensemble cast also includes

“We are thrilled to come back for a third season! We’re extremely fortunate to spend more time with our talented cast and crew,” said Rudolph and executive producer Danielle Renfrew Behrens of Banana Split. “Making this show with Apple TV+ has been a joy, and we can’t wait to reunite with our Loot family.”

Season 2 kicked off a year after Molly Wells (Rudolph) settles her very public divorce from tech billionaire John Novak (Adam Scott), and we find her thriving in her role as the head of her philanthropic organization, the Wells Foundation. Focused mainly on her charity work, Molly has sworn off any new relationships with men and embarks on a wellness journey. Fabulously single but not particularly independent, Molly keeps her trusty assistant Nicholas (Booster) by her side. He diligently caters to her every whim … and occasionally feeds her a kale smoothie spiked with gin.

Sofia Salinas (Rodriguez), the no-nonsense executive director of the Wells Foundation, continues to run things with compassionate efficiency, but her all-business ethos is thrown for a loop when she meets Molly’s charismatic architect friend Isaac (O-T Fagbenle). The bromance between Howard (Funches) and Nicholas also continues to flourish as they support each other in their endeavors both inside and outside the workplace. Meanwhile, Arthur (Faxon) has moved past his feelings for Molly and has adopted a new devil-may-care attitude on life, a change encapsulated by a very lame leather bracelet. The Wells Foundation team, including Rhonda (Meagen Fay) and Ainsley (Stephanie Styles), must pull together as co-workers and friends as Molly strives to publicly live up to her promise of giving away all of her vast fortune. Guest stars included Benjamin Bratt and Ana Gasteyer, among others.

“With each season, Loot continues to deliver joy, laughs and endearing characters for audiences around the world,” said Matt Cherniss, head of programming for Apple TV+. “We are excited to partner with Maya Rudolph, and the entire cast and creative team behind Loot, to create even more heartfelt moments with an ensemble of fan favorite characters in season three.”

Loot is created, written and executive produced by Yang and Hubbard. Rudolph serves as executive producer for Banana Split, along with her producing partner Renfrew Behrens, Dave Becky of 3 Arts and Natasha Lyonne.

Loot is produced for Apple by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Netflix Releases Final Trailer for Fourth & Final Season of David Castañeda’s “The Umbrella Academy”

Posted on July 10, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

It’s one final world-saving mission for David Castañeda.

Netflix has released the final trailer for the fourth and final season of its time-travel drama The Umbrella Academy, starring the 34-year-old Mexican American actor.

The trailer offers a glimpse of Nick Offerman’s character as Dr. Gene Thibedeau.

“The world we live in is one big phony baloney lie,” Offerman’s Thibedeau is heard in a voiceover. “That tentacle boy is the key to understanding all the timelines.”

Tentacle boy is an apparent reference to Justin H. Min’s Ben Hargreeves, who died during a mission but whose storyline appears to be a focus in Season 4.

Created by Steve Blackman, based on Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá’s Dark Horse comic book series, The Umbrella Academy’s final chapter launches August 8 on Netflix.

In the upcoming final season, the Hargreeves siblings have scattered after the climactic showdown at the Hotel Oblivion led to a complete reset of their timeline. Stripped of their powers, each is left to fend for themselves and find a new normal — with wildly varying degrees of success. Yet the trappings of their uncanny new world prove too hard to ignore for very long. Their father Reginald, alive and well, has stepped out of the shadows and into the public eye, overseeing a powerful and nefarious business empire. A mysterious association known as The Keepers holds clandestine meetings believing the reality they’re living in is a lie and a great reckoning is coming. As these strange new forces conspire around them, the Umbrella Academy must come together one last time — and risk upsetting the shaky peace they’ve all endured so much to secure — to finally set things right.

In addition to Castañeda and Min, Season 4 returning cast includes Elliot Page, Tom Hopper, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Robert Sheehan, Aidan Gallagher, Ritu Arya, Colm Feore, Megan Mullally and David Cross.

The Umbrella Academy is produced by UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, for Netflix.

Belissa Escobedo to Star in Reba McEntire’s Still-Untitled NBC Comedy Pilot

Posted on March 18, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Belissa Escobedo has lined up her next project…

The 25-year-old Latina actress and Blue Beetle star has been cast in Reba McEntire in her as-yet-untitled NBC multi-cam comedy pilot.

The project is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

The pilot follows Bobbie (McEntire) who inherits her father’s restaurant and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.

Escobedo stars as Bobbie’s sister Isabella, an enthusiastic 20-something, who has studied psychology and loves to analyze people. She is thrilled to start working at the tavern and is full of “great” ideas about how to bring it to life.

Escobedo’s star continues to rise following two major roles in DC Entertainment/Warner Bros’ Blue Beetle, where he portrayed the titular character’s (played by Xolo Maridueña) sister Milagro, and Disney’s Hocus Pocus 2 where she popped off the screen—no easy task when you’re starring opposite Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy, who returned as the Sanderson sisters.

Additional credits include the ABC dramedy The Baker And The Beauty alongside Carlos Gomez, Lisa Vidal and Victor Rasuk; Ryan Murphy’s FX anthology series American Horror Stories, the Catherine Hardwicke-directed Quibi limited series Don’t Look Deeper and the American High films Sex Appeal (Hulu) and Sid Is Dead.

Tommy Martinez to Star in Peacock’s New Comedy Series “Laid”

Posted on March 13, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Tommy Martinez is laying down a new path…

The 31-year-old Venezuelan actor will star in Peacock’s upcoming comedy series Laid as a series regular.

Martinez will star opposite Zosia Mamet and Michael Angarano in the series.

Martinez will play Isaac, Mamet will play AJ and Angarano will play Richie.

They join previously announced lead Stephanie Hsu in the series written and executive produced by Nahnatchka Khan and Sally Bradford McKenna.

Laid is based on the Australian series created by Marieke Hardy and Kirsty Fisher, and produced by Liz Watts.

It follows a woman who finds out her former lovers are dying in unusual ways and must go back through her sex timeline to confront her past to move forward. It’s described as a f*cked-up rom-com where the answer to “Why can’t I find love, is there something wrong with me?” is a resounding: “Yes, there is. The problem is definitely you.”

The series comes from Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Martinez was most recently a series regular on Freeform’s Good Trouble, which wrapped up its run after 5 seasons earlier this month. He played Gael Martinez since the show’s inception.

His additional television credits include Netflix’s Not Dead Yet, Prime Video’s Hunters, Mosquito Coast for Apple+, Showtime’s Shameless and the CW’s Riverdale.

UCP Extends Overall Development Deal with Tanya Saracho

Posted on January 22, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Tanya Saracho is getting an extension…

UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, has extended an overall development deal with the Latina Mexican-American actress, playwright, dramaturge and screenwriter.

She will develop and produce original projects for broadcast, cable and streaming platforms under the agreement.

Saracho is currently in development on several projects including the series The Wild Wild, inspired by the lives of Annie Oakley, America’s most famous sharpshooter, and the renowned trick-rider Señorita Rosalie, who were both stars of the famed Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.

She’ll serve as co-creator and executive producer of the project along with Jenniffer Gomez, with Jamie Babbit attached to direct and executive produce.

“It’s a pleasure and honor working with Tanya and her company, Ojalá. Their creative brilliance and entrepreneurial approach to producing and writing is so rare, and we are thrilled to continue our partnership,” said Beatrice Springborn, President, UCP and Universal International Studios, in a statement to Deadline.

“I am grateful to continue my relationship with UCP and be able to keep crafting the stories that matter most to me – brown, queer narratives which are still missing from the landscape and are so important to tell, and which UCP has proven a commitment to nurturing,” shared Saracho.

Saracho most recently served as creator, showrunner and executive producer of the critically acclaimed series Vida on Starz. The show featured all Latine writers and directors, including Saracho, who made her TV directorial debut. Vida won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comedy Series and was also honored by the National Hispanic Media Coalition with the 2019 Impact Award.

Additionally, the series won the Audience Award at the 2018 SXSW Film Festival and made its Season 2 premiere as an Official Selection of the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.

She was the recipient of the Norman Lear Writers Award at the Imagen Awards in 2021 and was honored by the LGBTQ California Legislative Caucus as their 2020 Pride Month Honoree. She received the Rising Star Award at the Outfest Legacy Awards and was awarded the New Voice Award by Final Draft.

Saracho co-founded the Untitled Latinx Project, whose mission is to increase Latine representation in television through content created by Latine writers, along with co-founding the Writers Access Support Staff Training Program to help increase representation and opportunities for underrepresented communities.

In addition, Saracho launched the Ojalá Ignition Lab in 2021, aimed to nurture, amplify and empower intersectional Latine voices.

Peacock Releases Trailer for Seth MacFarlane’s “Ted” Series, Starring Alanna Ubach

Posted on November 29, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Alanna Ubach is about to grin and bear it!

Peacock has released the official trailer for the seven-episode series Ted, starring the 48-year-old Puerto Rican and Mexican American actress.

The series, which will premiere on January 11, 2024, serves as a prequel to the Ted film franchise.

In addition to Ubach, the fresh cast of characters includes Max Burkholder, Scott Grimes and Giorgia Whigham while Seth MacFarlane will continue to voice Ted.

In this comedic prequel event series to the Ted films, it’s 1993, and Ted the bear’s (MacFarlane) moment of fame has passed. He’s now living back home in Framingham, Massachusetts with his best friend, 16-year-old John Bennett (Burkholder), along with John’s parents, Matty and Susan (Grimes and Ubach) and cousin Blaire (Giorgia Whigham). Ted may be a lousy influence on John, but at the end of the day, he’s a loyal pal who’s always willing to go out on a limb for friendship.

MacFarlane serves as co-showrunner with Paul Corrigan and Brad Walsh.

Rge series hails from UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, Fuzzy Door and MRC.

Netflix Releases Teaser Video for Fourth & Final Season of “Never Have I Ever” Featuring Michael Cimino as a New Love Interest

Posted on April 16, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Never say never have I ever to Michael Cimino…

Netflix has released a teaser video for the fourth and final season of Never Have I Ever, which will feature the 23-year-old half-Puerto Rican actor as a new distraction for protagonist Devi Vishwakumar (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan).

The new season will premiere on the streaming service on June 8.

The video shows what Devi’s senior year will look like.

Never Have I Ever is a coming-of-age comedy about the complicated life of a modern-day first-generation Indian American teenage girl. Devi is an overachieving high school student who has a short fuse that gets her into difficult situations, many of which involve one of her latest crushes who may or may not be Paxton Hall-Yoshida (Darren Barnet) and/or Ben Gross (Jaren Lewison).

Cimino will portray Ethan, who arrives on the heels of Paxton’s departure to college. At the end of Season 3, Devi had seemingly gotten over her crush on Paxton and moved on to option B, Ben, to whom she probably lost her V-card.

And Devi may not even be the character with the most exciting love life this season. It has been confirmed a wedding will take place, though the bride and groom are as yet a mystery.

The obvious guess is Devi’s cousin Kamala (Richa Moorjani) and her new beau Manish Kulkarni (Utkarsh Ambudkar). But wildcard guesses include Dr. Vishwakumar (Poorna Jagannathan), who is getting a new love this season played by Ivan Hernandez; her mother-in-law Nirmala (Ranjita Chakravarty) who meets a sweet new man (played by Jeff Garlin) who makes her reconsider if she really is done with relationships forever; or maybe Eleanor Wong (Ramona Young) and (Trent Benjamin Norris). It truly could be anyone.

Never Have I Ever is created by executive producers, Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher, with Fisher serving as the showrunner.

The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, and executive produced by 3 Arts Entertainment’s Howard Klein and David Miner.

The first three seasons of Never Have I Ever are available to stream via Netflix.

Gloria Calderón Kellett Appointed to Television Academy’s Executive Committee

Posted on January 22, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Gloria Calderón Kellett is reporting for committee duty…

The 47-year-old Cuban American award-winning television writer/creator has been appointed to the Television Academy’s Executive Committee for 2023 by chairman and CEO Frank Scherma.

Calderon Kellet is among six new committee members that includes Casey Bloys, Chairman and CEO, HBO/HBO Max Content; George Cheeks, President and CEO, CBS, and Chief Content Officer, News and Sports, Paramount+; Pearlena Igbokwe, Chairman, Universal Studio Group; Lisa Nishimura, Vice President, Independent and Documentary Films at Netflix; and Zack Van Amburg, Chief Content Officer and Head of Worldwide Video for Apple TV+.

They will advise on the organization’s diverse initiatives and help lead the Academy throughout the upcoming year.

“I’m thrilled to welcome these accomplished executives back to serve on our Executive Committee,” said Scherma in a statement. “They will continue to bring their extensive experience and insight to our dynamic organization.”

Additionally, the Academy’s Board of Governors has elected the following Peer Group Governors as their representatives on the executive committee for the 2023 term: Eddie Bonin (special visual effects), Debra Curtis (television executives), Jill Dickerson (reality programming) and Troy Underwood (children’s programming). Cris Abrego, chair of the Television Academy Foundation, will also serve on the committee.

Calderón Kellett’s recent credits include the One Day at a Time reboot and Amazon Studios’ With Love.

NBC Orders Additional Nine Episodes of George Lopez’s “Lopez vs. Lopez”

Posted on December 4, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

There are more family laughs in George Lopez’s future…

NBC has ordered an additional nine episodes of its new hit comedy series Lopez vs. Lopez, starring the 61-year-old Mexican American comedian and actor and his daughter Mayan Lopez.

With the additional episodes, it brings the first season total to 22 episodes.

Lopez vs. Lopez, which comes from creator/showrunner Debby Wolfe, is a working-class family comedy about dysfunction, reconnection and all the pain and joy in between.

Starring George and Mayan, the comedy tells the story of a working-class old-school Latino who moves in with his modern Gen Z daughter as they rebuild their dysfunctional relationship one argument at a time. It’s old vs. new, father vs. daughter, Lopez vs. Lopez.

Selenis Leyva, Brice Gonzalez, Matt Shively and Al Madrigal also star.

The freshman series has the strongest English-dominant Hispanic index among the major four broadcast networks and is the No. 1 NBC comedy launch on Peacock, according to the network.

The show’s pilot episode is up to a 1.6 rating in the 18-49 demo and 7.6 million viewers on linear and digital viewing.

Wolfe executive produces with Bruce Helford, George Lopez, Michael Rotenberg, and Katie Newman.

Lopez vs Lopez is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with Mohawk Productions, Travieso Productions, Mi Vida Loba and 3 Arts.

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