‘Witcher’ Prequel Series at Netflix Casts Michelle Yeoh

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“The Last of Us” series at HBO has cast Anna Torv in a recurring guest star role.Torv joins previously announced series leads Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as well as cast members Gabriel Luna, Merle Dandrige, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlet, Con O’Neill, and Jeffery Pierce.“The Last of Us” series was first announced as being in development at the premium cabler last March, with the show landing a formal series order in November.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterA television series based on the life of Malcolm X is in the works at Sony Pictures Television’s TriStar, Variety has learned exclusively.The series will be based on the novels “X: A Novel” and “The Awakening of Malcolm X,” both of which were co-written by Malcolm’s daughter, Ilyasah Shabazz. “X: A Novel” was also co-written by Kekla Magoon while “The Awakening of Malcolm X” was also co-written by Tiffany D.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAMC has ordered a series adaptation of “Dark Winds,” based on the Leaphorn & Chee book series by Tony Hillerman.Zahn McClarnon will star and executive produce with Kiowa Gordon also starring. Graham Roland will write and executive produce.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“The Offer,” the Paramount Plus drama series that will go behind-the-scenes of the making of “The Godfather,” is adding over a dozen actors to its cast.Burn Gorman has been cast in the series regular role of Charles Bluhdorn, the volatile head of Gulf & Western, while 14 recurring guest stars have also joined the series.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterUzo Aduba and Matthew Broderick are set for two of the lead roles in the Netflix drama series “Painkiller,” Variety has learned.The six-episode limited series is about the origins of the opioid crisis in America. Along with Aduba and Broderick, the series will also star West Duchovny, Dina Shihabi, and John Rothman.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“Cruel Summer” creator Bert V. Royal is no longer affiliated with the series, Variety has confirmed.According to sources, Royal departed the series after the pilot finished filming last year due to creative differences.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterKyle MacLachlan will play Howard Baskin in the upcoming Peacock series “Joe Exotic,” Variety has learned.MacLachlan will star opposite series lead Kate McKinnon, who will play Carole Baskin. Howard is described as Carole’s even-keeled husband who supports her throughout the endeavor with Joe.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe “Game of Thrones” prequel series “House of the Dragon” at HBO has cast Milly Alcock and Emily Carey in recurring roles.“House of the Dragon” is set a few hundred years prior to the events of “Game of Thrones” and tells the story of House Targaryen and the Targaryen civil war that became known as the “Dance of the Dragons.”Alcock has been cast as the young version of Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, the king’s first-born child, she is of pure Valyrian blood, and she is a

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJoel Kim Booster has joined the upcoming Maya Rudolph-led comedy series at Apple.The untitled series follows Molly (Rudolph), a woman whose seemingly perfect life is upended after her husband leaves her with nothing but 87 billion dollars. Booster will play the role of Nicholas, Molly’s loyal assistant.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterStarz has added five actors in recurring roles to its upcoming Watergate series “Gaslit.”Allison Tolman (“Fargo,” “Why Women Kill”), Chris Bauer (“The Wire,” “True Blood”), J.C. MacKenzie (“The Trial of the Chicago 7,” “October Faction”), Hamish Linklater (“Legion,” “The Big Short”), and Chris Messina (“The Mindy Project,” “Argo”) have all joined the series.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterApple has ordered a series adaptation of the Garth Risk Hallberg “City on Fire” from Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage.The eight-episode series falls under the first-look deal Fake Empire, Schwartz and Savage’s production banner, set up at Apple in 2019. It is the first series order to come from the deal.In “City on Fire,” an NYU student is shot in Central Park on the 4th of July, 2003.

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“The Last of Us” series at HBO has added Nico Parker in a guest starring role, Variety has confirmed.Parker will appear as Sarah, the daughter of Joel (Pedro Pascal). Along with Pascal, Parker joins previously announced cast members Bella Ramsey, Gabriel Luna, and Merle Dandridge.Parker most recently appeared in a lead role in the HBO/Sky miniseries “The Third Day,” starring opposite Jude Law.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe Weeknd is developing a series at HBO which he would star in as well as co-write.Currently titled “The Idol,” the series follows a female pop singer starts a romance with an enigmatic L.A. club owner who is the leader of a secret cult.The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, will server as co-writer and executive producer along with Reza Fahim and Sam Levinson, with all three credited as creators of the show.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterNetflix has ordered a series based on the Ali Novak YA novel “My Life With the Walter Boys,” Variety has learned exclusively.The streamer has given the drama series a 10-episode order, with episodes set to be approximately 50 minutes each. In the coming of age show, following the loss of her family in a tragic accident, 16-year old Manhattanite Jackie Howard has to learn to adapt to a new life in rural Colorado with her guardian – and 12 very rowdy kids.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterThe co-showrunners of the “Halo” series at Paramount Plus are exiting the series, Variety has learned exclusively.Steven Kane and Kyle Killen are both out of the long-gestating video game adaptation. According to sources, Killen departed the project ahead of the start of production last year as he felt he was unable to render full-time showrunner duties during the show’s shoot in Budapest.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAndrew Garfield and Daisy Edgar-Jones will star in the FX on Hulu limited series “Under the Banner of Heaven,” Variety has learned.The series hails from write Dustin Lance Black and is based on the Jon Krakauer novel of the same name.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJuno Temple has signed on to star in “The Offer,” the Paramount Plus series that will explore the behind-the-scenes drama during the making of “The Godfather.”“The Offer” is based on the experience of Oscar-winning producer Albert S. Ruddy (Miles Teller), about the behind-the-scenes events of the original 1972 film.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterAMC is officially moving forward with a series adaptation of Anne Rice’s “Interview With the Vampire.”News of the series order comes just over a year after Variety exclusively reported that AMC had acquired the rights to Rice’s book series “The Vampire Chronicles” and “The Lives of the Mayfair Witches.” “Interview With the Vampire” is the first series to be greenlit out of the acquisition.The cabler has given the series an eight episode order with an eye toward a 2022

Joe Otterson TV Reporter“The Upshaws” has been renewed for Season 2 at Netflix.The first season of the multi-cam comedy debuted on the streamer in May. The new season will feature 16 half-hour episodes, an increase from 10 in the first season.“We are so excited we get to bring this amazing show back for a second season,” said Regina Hicks, the show’s co-creator and co-showrunner.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterDean Winters has joined the “Joe Exotic” series at Peacock in the role of Jeff Lowe.Fans of the hit Netflix docuseries “Tiger King” will recall that Lowe became Exotic’s business partner and ally in his fight against Carole Baskin before eventually turning on him.Winters is the latest addition to the already stacked cast of “Joe Exotic.” He joins previously announced series leads Kate McKinnon, who will play Baskin, and John Cameron Mitchell, who will play Exotic.