FX has rounded out the series regular cast for drama pilot Kindred, based on an adaptation of Octavia E. Butler’s influential novel. Mallori Johnson is a newcomer. She stars with Ryan Kwanten, Gayle Rankin and Austin Smith. David Alexander Kaplan also joins them.
The project hails from writer Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Watchmen), Courtney Lee-Mitchell (The Reluctant Fundamentalist), Darren Aronofsky and his Protozoa Pictures (Black Swan, The Wrestler), Joe Weisberg (The Americans) and Joel Fields (Fosse/Verdon). FX Productions is responsible for the production.
Johnson portrays Dana, a young Black woman who is an aspiring writer and has moved to Los Angeles to escape her familial obligations. Before she can settle into her new home, she is violently pulled back in time to a nineteenth century plantation, with which her family is most surprisingly and intimately connected. Interracial romance runs through her history and present. The clock is ticking as her struggle to face the secrets that run through her blood in this genre-breaking exploration about the ties that bind.
For now, character descriptions are kept secret. Stock is believed to be playing Dana’s love interest and Kwanten is believed to be playing Tom.
Since its publication in 1979, the novel has sold more than a million copies.
Jacobs Jenkins wrote the pilot. He will also executive produce it with Ari Handel and Lee-Mitchell of Protozoa Pictures. Janicza Bravo (Zola) will direct and executive producer the pilot.
Tony-nominated Stock will next co-star in John Slattery’s film Maggie Moore(s), starring Jon Hamm and Tina Fey. He most recently co-starred in Netflix’s Emmy-nominated short form comedy series, Bonding; as well as a series regular on Disney+’s drama series The Right Stuff. ICM and Anonymous Content represent Stock.
Kwanten is best known for his role as Jason Stackhouse for seven seasons on HBO’s True Blood. He was most recently seen in the Amazon anthology Them from Lena Waithe. He previously starred in Blumhouse/Facebook Watch series Sacred Lies opposite Juliette Lewis and alongside Sean Bean in The Oath for Sony’s Crackle. Verve and JackowayAusten Tyerman are reps for Kwanten.
Rankin can most recently be seen opposite Matthew Rhys in HBO’s Perry Mason. She just wrapped shooting Alex Garland’s new feature, Men, and had a Cannes break-out in Mike Covino and Kyle Martin’s film The Climb. She recently ended her run starring as Sheila the She-Wolf on Netflix’s Emmy-nominated series GLOW. UTA and B-Side Management are representing Rankin in the UK.
Smith has appeared on Netflix’s Russian Doll, HBO’s Random Acts of Flyness and NBC’s New Amsterdam. He was an original Broadway cast member of Hamilton and is currently starring in the world premiere of Martyna Majok’s Sanctuary City at New York Theatre Workshop. Smith is represented by APA, Authentic Talent and Literary Management.
Crowe-Legacy stars opposite Forest Whitaker in the Epix series Godfather of Harlem. Up next, she will be seen opposite Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto in the WeWork limited series WeCrashed for Apple TV+. Crowe-Legacy is represented by Anonymous Content, and The Gersh Agency.
Eleven-year-old Kaplan worked alongside Stephen Dorf in the feature film Embattled and is known for his supporting lead roles in Lifetime Movie, A Sister’s Secret, and two episodes of Creepshow where he was directed by Tom Savini and Greg Nicotero. Kaplan also appeared in The Resident and MacGyver. Joy Pervis, J Pervis Talent Agency, and WendiGreen at Atlas Artists are Kaplan’s reps.