Antoine Fuqua Signs Overall TV Deal With MTV Entertainment Studios, Paramount

Joe Otterson TV ReporterWriter, director, and actor Gabriela Ortega has signed with M88, Variety has learned exclusively. Ortega will continue to be represented by Dean Panaro Talent, KMR Talent, and Meyer & Downs.Ortega was selected to be a 2021-2022 Sundance Institute “Art of Practice” fellow, at which time she debuted her short film “Huella.” The film was produced as part of Lena Waithe’s Rising Voices fellowship during the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.2021-2022 Sundance Institute “Art of Practice“ fellow Ortega debuted her short film “Huella,” which was produced as part of Lena Waithe’s Rising Voices fellowship, at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“The Cleaning Lady” has been renewed for Season 2 at Fox.“This heart-pounding, emotionally driven story has captivated audiences across all platforms with its empowering, suspenseful narrative about an undocumented worker forced to navigate the criminal underworld to save her ailing son’s life,” said Michael Thorn, president of Fox Entertainment. “’The Cleaning Lady’ bravely and unapologetically takes on many of today’s most important social issues — something we’re proud to say is one of Fox long-time calling cards — and it’s all brought into sharp perspective by the powerful performance of our lead, Élodie Yung and the entire cast.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAMC has officially ordered a followup to “Orphan Black,” Variety has learned.Titled “Orphan Black: Echoes,” the new series is set in the near future and takes a deep dive into the exploration of the scientific manipulation of human existence. It follows a group of women as they weave their way into each other’s lives and embark on a journey, unravelling the mystery of their identity and uncovering a story of love and betrayal.AMC has given the show a 10-episode order.

EXCLUSIVE: Natalie Chaidez (, Queen of the South) has signed an exclusive multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Television. As part of the deal, she will develop and create original programming via WBTV for all platforms.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterTahj Mowry will star in the upcoming Disney Plus series “The Muppets Mayhem,” Variety has learned exclusively.Mowry joins previously announced cast member Lilly Singh in the series, which was first announced in March. The live-action show follows The Electric Mayhem Band — consisting of Dr. Teeth on vocals and keyboards, Animal on drums, Floyd Pepper on vocals and bass, Janice on vocals and lead guitar, Zoot on saxophone, and Lips on trumpet — as they record their first album ever.Mowry will star as Gary “Moog” Moogowski.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterCliff Curtis has signed with Verve for representation, Variety has learned exclusively. Curtis continues to be repped by Anonymous Content.The New Zealand-born actor is known for his roles in films like “Training Day,” “The Dark Horse,” “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw,” “Whale Rider,” “Doctor Sleep,” and “Sunshine.” Curtis also starred for multiple seasons in the AMC series “Fear the Walking Dead.”On the horizon, Curtis will be seen in the highly-anticipated sequel “Avatar 2,” with Curtis also set to appear in both “Avatar 3” and “Avatar 4,” both of which are in various stages of production.He most recently appeared in the Lisa Joy film “Reminiscence” alongside Thandiwe Newton and Hugh Jackman.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterBoth “The Rookie” and “The Good Doctor” have been renewed at ABC.For “The Rookie,” that means the show will go to a fifth season, while “The Good Doctor” will be back for a sixth. “The Rookie” currently airs Sundays on ABC with “The Good Doctor” airing on Mondays.The renewals come as ABC is also prepping a potential spinoff of “The Rookie” starring Niecy Nash. The spinoff will be introduced in a two-episode backdoor pilot during “The Rookie’s” fourth season.“The Rookie” stars Nathan Fillion as John Nolan, Mekia Cox as Nyla Harper, Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez, Richard T.

EXCLUSIVE: Mike Leech and Zach Smilovitz, co-creators of Stephen Colbert Presents Tooning Out The News, are staying put at CBS Studios, the studio behind the Paramount+ animated news satire. The duo have renewed their overall deal at the studio, originally signed in 2020, where they will continue to write and produce across all platforms.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterWWE and Fanatics have partnered on a new long-term sports and entertainment deal, Variety has learned.The deal will see Fanatics use their digital sports platform to create an enhanced experienced for WWE fans all over the world. It encompasses areas including e-commerce and licensed merchandise as well as physical, digital, and NFT trading cards.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe “Teen Wolf” revival movie at Paramount Plus has added five actors to the cast, including multiple returning stars of the original series.The new cast members are: Ian Bohen returning as Peter Hale; Vince Mattis as Eli Hale, fifteen year-old son of Derek Hale; Nobi Nakanishi as Deputy Ishida; Khylin Rhambo returning as Mason Hewitt; and Amy Lin Workman as Hikari Zhang. Nakanishi had also previously appeared on the original “Teen Wolf” in a different role, playing Young Katashi in two episodes of Season 3.The quintet joins previously announced stars Tyler Posey, Holland Roden, Shelley Hennig, Crystal Reed, Orny Adams, Linden Ashby, JR Bourne, Colton Haynes, Ryan Kelley, Melissa Ponzio, and Dylan Sprayberry in the film revival of the beloved MTV drama series. In the film, a terrifying evil emerges in Beacon Hills.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterA live-action version of “The Loud House” has been picked up to series at Paramount Plus.The announcement was made as part of Nickelodeon’s upfronts presentation on Thursday. Production will begin on the new series in June with the premiere set for later this year.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Archive 81” has been canceled at Netflix after just one season.The eight-episode series debuted on the streamer back in January. The show followed archivist Dan Turner (Mamoudou Athie), who takes a job restoring a collection of damaged videotapes from 1994.

EXCLUSIVE: Amina Munir is formalizing her relationship with Universal Television.

Angelique Jackson Taraji P. Henson’s TPH Entertainment has signed a new overall deal with BET Studios.Under the new pact, Henson and TPH Entertainment will partner with the studio venture, which supplies content to Paramount Plus, Showtime, CBS, Nickelodeon, BET Plus and BET, as well as select third-party platforms.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJulia Garner has signed a first-look television deal with Tomorrow Studios, Variety has learned.Under the deal, Garner and her producing partner, Rowan Riley, will develop scripted series via their Alma Margo production company for Tomorrow Studios, an ITV partnership.“Above all else, Alma Margo is looking for bold and original content, so we thought it only natural to partner with a studio that also fits that description,” said Garner and Riley. “We are incredibly proud to be working with Tomorrow Studios who exhibit every quality that we’re looking for in a partner: intelligence, drive, experience and passion.”Garner is perhaps best known for her role in the critically-acclaimed Netflix series “Ozark,” which will release the second half of its fourth and final season in April.

MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount want to stay in business with the Emmy-winning Antoine Fuqua and his Hill District Media banner. The executive producer of the Paramount+ drama Mayor of Kingstown has signed overall deal with the studios that will focus on original scripted and unscripted content for TV.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“East New York,” the drama pilot currently in the works at CBS, has added four new cast members.Ruben Santiago Hudson (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Broadway’s “Lackawanna Blues”), Richard Kind (“Argo,” “A Serious Man”), Lavel Schley (“Barriers,” “Tell My Family I Love Them”), and Olivia Luccardi (“The Thing About Pam,” “The Deuce”) have all joined the pilot alongside previously announced series lead Amanda Warren.In the pilot, Regina Haywood (Warren) is the newly promoted deputy inspector of East New York, an impoverished, working-class will neighborhood at the eastern edge of Brooklyn. She leads a diverse group of officers and detectives, some of whom are reluctant to deploy her creative methods of serving and protecting during the midst of social upheaval and the early seeds of gentrification.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterLaysla De Oliveira will star alongside Zoe Saldaña in the upcoming Paramount Plus series “Lioness” from Taylor Sheridan, Variety has learned exclusively.The series is based on a real-life CIA program and follows Cruz Manuelos (De Oliveira), described as a rough-around-the-edges but passionate young Marine, who is recruited to join the CIA’s Lioness Engagement Team to help bring down a terrorist organization from within. Saldaña will play Joe, the station chief of the Lioness program tasked with training, managing and leading her female undercover operatives. The series is set to go into production in June.De Oliveira currently stars in the Netflix series “Locke & Key,” with the third season of that series set to debut later in 2022.

Rich Moore, the Oscar-winning filmmaker behind such titles as Zootopia and Wreck-It Ralph, has entered into an exclusive, multi-year overall deal with Skydance Animation, which will see him create, develop and produce original animated features for the studio.

Skydance Animation has landed another major talent.Rich Moore, director of “Zootopia,” “Wreck-It Ralph” and “Ralph Breaks the Internet,” is joining the team in an exclusive, multi-year overall deal. Under the new pact, Moore will create, develop and produce original animated features for the studio.