Welcome to Rumorville! Here you can learn about casting news that’s about to break in Hollywood. These speculations might be only rumors, but that doesn’t mean you can’t follow the trail all the way to the audition room.
“Smash”
Let them be your (Broadway) stars! Following a streamed broadcast of 2015’s “Bombshell” concert, the producers behind the NBC television series “Smash” announced that a musical stage adaptation is in development for Broadway. Steven Spielberg, Robert Greenblatt, and Neil Meron are all on board as lead producers, with series music writers Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman writing the score for a book co-written by Bob Martin (“The Prom”) and Rick Elice (“Jersey Boys”). No director has been named at this time. Expect theater giants and series casting team Telsey + Company to head the casting when the project is further into development—find out what you should know about auditioning for the casting director here!
Secret Marvel Movie
While “Morbius” and “Venom 2” are currently in production limbo, Sony Pictures has begun work on a secret Marvel Universe film. First reported by Variety, veteran TV director S.J. Clarkson has signed on to direct the first female-centric Marvel movie from Sony’s catalog. It’s not been confirmed who the central character will be, and Sony is keeping quiet, but sources say there is a strong possibility the film will be based on Madame Web. No writer or star is attached at this point, and the studio is looking to cast a big-name actor for the lead before hiring a writer to script the story around them, so expect Sony to aim for one of Hollywood’s buzzy A-listers to fill the role.
“Greenleaf Spinoff”
Ahead of its fifth and final season, the hit OWN series “Greenleaf” will continue its life as a spinoff. The network, in tandem with Lionsgate, put a new series in development, which will come from creator and executive producer Craig Wright. There’s no word yet who or what the new series will focus on, or if it will follow any of the characters in the megachurch drama that stars Merle Dandridge, Keith David, Lynn Whitfield, Kim Hawthorne, Lamman Rucker, and Deborah Joy Winans, but a five-season arc with a possible spinoff has always been in the cards from the get-go. Parent series casting director Kim Coleman could follow to the spinoff, as well.
“Queens”
HBO will expand its repertoire with a new stage-to-screen adaptation. The cabler has reportedly put into development drama series “Queens,” based on the play by Pulitzer Prize winner Martyna Majok. Majok will pen the adaptation and executive produce the teleplay, which revolves around the lives of two generations of immigrant women that collide in a basement apartment in Queens. “Insecure” executive producer, showrunner, writer, and director Prentice Penny will also executive produce, leading the way for ample opportunity for cast and creative team members from “Insecure” to join the new HBO project. Be sure to keep an eye out of “Insecure” CDs Christopher Gray and Vickie Thomas for potential opportunities on “Queens.”
“A Treachery of Spies”
“Harry Potter” Producer David Barron will head from the movies to the small screen, having reportedly lined up his first long-form TV drama, an adaptation of the acclaimed detective novel “A Treachery of Spies.” The historical thriller begins in 1940s WWII France and unfurls its mysteries into the present day with a brilliant but haunted female detective as the lead. Barron has worked with U.K. firm Enriched Media to secure all TV and film rights; they are now in talks with both U.S. and U.K. markets to try to find a home for the potential project. No creative team has been announced.
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