‘Avalon’: Alexa Mansour Joins David E. Kelley’s ABC Drama Series

Ever the workhorse, Steven Soderbergh has made the most of the three-year overall deal he signed with HBO Max in January 2020. The director has already supplied HBO subscribers with three films, “Let Them All Talk,” “No Sudden Move,” and “Kimi,” with “Magic Mike’s Last Dance” on the way soon.

We are mere days away from the release of Lucasfilm’s latest foray into the galaxy far, far away, “Andor.” And as with every major franchise nowadays, the release of a new project just means there will be plenty of questions about what’s to come next. And boy howdy, Lucasfilm has a lot of “Star Wars” TV content on the horizon, including what might be the most mysterious (and thus, interesting) project, “The Acolyte.” But as we get closer to production, at least we’re getting more information about who might star in the cast of the outlier “Star Wars” series.

K.J. Yossman Banijay Rights has set a new returning drama series titled “Runners” with writer John Preston (pictured above, left) and exec producer Ellie Wood (pictured above, right) of Clearwood Films, the team behind “Stonehouse” and “The Dig.” “Runners” tells the story of the world’s first police force, the Bow Street Runners, who were formed in the 1740s in London, which at the time was facing a colossal crime wave. The Chief Magistrate of London at the time, Heny Fielding (who also happened to be a celebrated novelist), decided to take on this criminal underworld by assembling a group of police.“This extraordinary story will tell of how a group of just six police officers, none with any training or experience, set about imposing law and order on a completely lawless society and embarked on solving one of the strangest cases of its time – one with momentous political and social ramifications,” reads the logline.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and Media Nicole Power has joined the ensemble of the upcoming Netflix drama series“Glamorous.” She will appear alongside the previously announced “Sex and the City” icon Kim Cattrall, as well as actor, singer-songwriter and YouTuber Miss Benny. In the show, Power will portray Mykynnleigh, a seemingly guileless corporate consultant who rolls into town to help make a business deal happen. Although she seems wholesome and unsophisticated, those appearances are deceiving as Mykynnleigh possesses a lot of backbone and business acumen. “Glamorous” tells the story of Marco Mejia (Miss Benny), a gender-nonconforming queer young man whose life seems to be stuck in place until he lands a job working for legendary makeup mogul Madolyn Addison (Cattrall). It’s Marco’s first chance to figure out what he wants out of life, who he actually is and what it really means for him to be queer.

EXCLUSIVE: Allen Leech (Downton Abbey, Bohemian Rhapsody) and India Mullen (Normal People, Brassic) will lead the cast of an Irish drama series for AMC Networks’ Sundance Now and local broadcaster Virgin Media Television, we’ve learned.

EXCLUSIVE: Demetrius Grosse, coming off playing one of the leads in ABC’s untitled Kay Oyegun drama pilot, has been cast by the network as a lead opposite Neve Campbell in another drama project, Avalon. The series, based on Michael Connelly’s short story, comes from David E. Kelley, A+E Studios and 20th Television.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Jennifer Connelly is set to star opposite Joel Edgerton in the Apple series adaptation of the Blake Crouch novel “Dark Matter,” Variety has learned. The nine-episode series was ordered at Apple in March. It will follow Jason Dessen (Edgerton), a physicist, professor, and family man who – one night while walking home on the streets of Chicago – is abducted into an alternate version of his life. Wonder quickly turns to nightmare when he tries to return to his reality amid the multiverse of lives he could have lived. In this labyrinth of mind-bending realities, he embarks on a harrowing journey to get back to his true family and save them from the most terrifying, unbeatable foe imaginable: himself.

following Len Amato’s departure.Orsi has been with HBO since 2003, when she began as an executive assistant. She eventually rose through the ranks to co-run the drama series development and programming department in 2016 with David Levine, who ran point on “Westworld” and “True Detective.” The role was president of HBO programming Casey Bloys’ first appointment.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer HBO drama chief Francesca Orsi has extended her contract with the Warner Bros. Discovery-owned pay TV channel through 2026, Variety has confirmed. As part of Orsi’s re-upped pact, she has been given the new title of executive vice president of HBO programming, head of HBO drama series and films. Orsi first joined HBO in 2003 as an executive assistant. She has been the solo head of drama series development and programming since her former co-head David Levine exited in February 2019. They were both appointed to the position originally in 2016. News that Orsi, a direct report to HBO and HBO Max content chief Casey Bloys, will be continuing her tenure at HBO comes on the heels of the enormous launch success for “Game of Thrones” prequel “House of the Dragon,” a series Orsi has played a big part in developing and marketing.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Former WarnerMedia tech exec Alex Maghen has joined Husslup as chief technology officer. He’ll oversee all engineering and technological aspects of the company, including strategy, as the new mobile app for creative talent discovery in media and entertainment continues its launch. The app is currently in an invite-only beta stage. Maghen will report to Husslup CEO/founder H Schuster, who announced the hire on Monday. “Any tech company is only as good as the talented people behind it, and with Alex’s arrival we are now fully positioned to accelerate our product growth and fulfill our mission of democratizing and diversifying access to the industry,” Schuster said in a statement. “Alex is a triple threat—he has deep technical expertise, an impressive CV at the intersection of technology and entertainment, and a personal understanding of the obstacles that diverse members of our creative community face.”

Former Bolton Wanderers midfielder Luke Murphy has joined non-league side Macclesfield FC.

EXCLUSIVE: Bill Camp (The Queen’s Gambit) will reunite once again with his American Rust and The Looming Tower co-star Jeff Daniels in A Man in Full, Netflix’s six-episode limited series from David E. Kelley and Regina King based on Tom Wolfe’s 1998 novel.

Jennifer Aniston is joining the cast!

EXCLUSIVE: Ricardo Chavira has been tapped for a heavily recurring role opposite Kim Cattrall in Netflix drama series Glamorous, from Jordon Nardino (Star Trek: Discovery, Smash) and Damon Wayans Jr.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter Joe Pesci has signed on to star in Pete Davidson’s upcoming Peacock comedy series “Bupkis,” Variety has learned. Davidson will star in the series along with Pesci and previously announced cast member Edie Falco. The show was ordered to series at Peacock in April. “Bupkis” is a half-hour comedy that is loosely based on Davidson’s real life. Falco will star as Davidson’s mother with Pesci now set to play Davidson’s grandfather. This marks just the second regular television role of Pesci’s career. Prior to this, he starred in the short-lived NBC series “Half Nelson” in 1985. Pesci is best known for his film career, in particular his collaborations with Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro. The trio have worked together on seminal films like “Raging Bull,” “Goodfellas,” “Casino,” and “The Irishman.” Pesci won the Academy Award for best supporting actor for his work in “Goodfellas” and was nominated in the same category for both “Raging Bull” and “The Irishman.” Pesci is also known for his roles in films like “My Cousin Vinny,” the “Lethal Weapon” franchise, the first two “Home Alone” films, and “JFK.”

EXCLUSIVE: Line of Duty star Craig Parkinson, Gurjeet Singh (Ackley Bridge) and Naana Agyei-Ampadu, Death in Paradise are joining Acorn TV’s four-part mystery drama Mrs Sidhu Investigates. Meera Syal is fronting the four-part series as a crime-solving Indian chef, having voiced the eponymous sleuth in a popular BBC Radio 4 series of the same name.

EXCLUSIVE: Roslyn Ruff (Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector) has been tapped as a lead opposite Neve Campbell in Avalon, ABC’s drama series based on Michael Connelly’s short story, from David E. Kelley, A+E Studios and 20th Television.

Scott Foley (The Big Leap) has been tapped for a key recurring role opposite Melissa Benoist in The Girls On The Bus, HBO Max’s political drama series from Warner Bros. TV.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterABC has opted not to pick up the drama pilot “Criminal Nature” to series.This is now the second time the project has been passed over at the broadcast network. A different iteration of the pilot with a different creative team — which included Kevin Costner as co-writer — was in the works at ABC in 2021 before being axed in July.The new version, which had been titled “Criminal Nature,” was part of ABC’s 2022 pilot season slate.