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The “Washington Black” series at Hulu has cast Billy Boyd, Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, and Julian Rhind-Tutt in recurring roles, Variety has learned exclusively.

“Washington Black” is adapted from Esi Edugyan’s novel of the same name. The nine-episode series is set in the 19th century and follows Washington “Wash” Black (Ernest Kingsley Jr.) as he flees from a Barbados sugar plantation after a shocking death threatens to upend his life. He becomes the protégé of Medwin Harris (Sterling K. Brown), a Black refugee from Nova Scotia who serves as the de facto major of Black Halifax. While trying to outrun his past and the hunters on his tail, he meets Tanna (Lola Evans), a young wealthy British woman who passed as white but was secretly born of a Melanesian mother on the Solomon Islands, forcing her and her father to flee London for Nova Scotia. Tanna’s father pushes...

Christopher McDonald (“Big Daddy”) is joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The “Hacks” and “Happy Gilmore” star joins the upcoming Disney+ series “Secret Invasion,” an individual with knowledge of the project confirmed.

Details surrounding McDonald’s role are unknown but Deadline, which first reported the story, said it will be a completely new character intended to crossover to the larger MCU. McDonald joins a cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn, once again playing Nick Fury and the Skrull Talos, respectively. Fury, the former director of S.H.I.E.Ld. and Talos, one of a race of shape-shifting creatures at war with the alien Kree empire, first teamed up in 2019’s “Captain Marvel.”

“Secret Invasion” also stars Olivia Colman, Emilia Clarke, Kingsley Ben-Adir and Killian Scott. The show will be loosely based on the 2008 Marvel Comics crossover event of the same name, in which it was revealed that...

Exclusive: Christopher McDonald (Happy Gilmore) is the latest big name to join Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn in Secret Invasion, the upcoming Marvel series for Disney+, Deadline has learned.

In Secret Invasion, Jackson and Mendelsohn reprise their MCU characters Nick Fury and the Skrull Talos, respectively, who first met in Captain Marvel. The crossover comic event series showcases a faction of shape-shifting Skrulls who have been infiltrating Earth for years.

Details about the role are being kept under wraps, but I hear it is a newly created character that could cross over to the larger MCU, including appearing in movies and other Disney+ limited series. A rep for Marvel declined comment.

The cast of Secret Invasion is expected to also include Olivia Colman, Emilia Clarke, Kingsley Ben-Adir and Killian Scott.

McDonald is recurring on well received new HBO Max comedy series Hacks and co-stars in indie feature Walking With Herb.

Since we’ve already had faith-based features involving football, baseball (“Where Hope Grows”), basketball (“Slamma Jamma”), boxing (“Carman: The Champion”), competitive skateboarding (“Hardflip”) and even mixed martial arts (“The Fight Within”), it was doubtless inevitable that someone would produce a movie where the Lord works in mysterious ways on the golf course. Robert Redford’s “The Legend of Bagger Vance” (2000) didn’t quite qualify, given the nondenominational nature of its spirituality. On the other hand, “Walking With Herb” is explicitly and unashamedly upfront about depicting how an agent of God, or someone of an even higher pay grade, might directly intervene in providing a shot at redemption — and no handicap at all — for a golfer far from the fairway.

Striking perfect balances of gruffness and grief, taciturn skepticism and bemused self-awareness, Edward James Olmos is dead solid perfect in the lead role of Joe Amable-Amo, a bank manager and devoted family man in Las Cruces,...

This weekend saw the debut of two appealing studio titles, neither of which will be in theaters. “Without Remorse,” Paramount’s relaunch of their Tom Clancy franchise and “The Mitchells vs the Machines,” from Sony Animation, launched on Amazon Prime and Netflix, respectively, free to subscribers. On the Netflix chart, “Mitchells” immediately placed at #1.

The cinemas could have used their momentum. Last weekend, “Mortal Kombat” and “Demon Slayer: Mugen Train” surpassed expectations with openings over $20 million. This weekend, the only new release was horror film “Separation,” which earned $1.8 million. “Mortal” and “Demon.” each fell over 70 percent.

It isn’t unusual for big openers to drop half or more in their second weeks, but new competition opening is usually a contributing factor. It also appears that the titles’ audiences showed less crossover interest. Total business for the weekend will be around $24 million, about 60 percent less than last week.

Exhibitors hoped for momentum,...

Veteran actress Kathleen Quinlan stars alongside Edward James Olmos and George Lopez in Walking With Herb in theaters on April 30. The trio bonded over food and Dodger games while shooting in El Paso, TX. She also talks about her favorite moment from the classic film, Apollo 13, and why she has a special connection to the Latino community.

Warrior Queen Of Jhansi, Beckman attract buyers.

LA-based Pinnacle Peak Pictures, renamed after the sale of the North American Pure Flix streaming platform to Sony, is screening Man Of God to EFM buyers and continuing sales on Walking With Herb as it reports a raft of deals on its slate of family, inspirational and faith films.

Walking With Herb, which is being lined up for a US theatrical release in early summer and features George Lopez as God’s motorcycle-riding messenger, has sold to California Filmes for all Latin America.

Female empowerment story Warrior Queen Of Jhansi has gone to Rialto in Australia,...

"No one thing can force you back to the faith you once had." An official trailer has debuted for a faith-based religious propaganda film titled Walking with Herb. We usually don't write about these kind of films, but this is so hilarious it's worth a lookjust to laugh at. Sixty-five-year-old Joe Amable-Amo is struggling with his faith after tragedy hits. Joe is working at his desk when he receives a message from God on his computer that tells him he has been chosen to deliver an inspirational message to the world - by playing golf. God tells Joe he is going to play in a tournament, and if his faith is strong enough, he will win. As Joe embarks on a spiritual journey along with God's personal messenger and motorcyclist, Herb, Joe learns to make a difference. Truly inspirational storytelling right there. Starring Edward James Olmos as Joe, with George Lopez playing Herb,...

Optimism Entertainment, Rio Road Entertainment plan US theatrical release in March 2021.

Pure Flix/Quality Flix has introduced international buyers at AFM 2020 Online to new sales title Walking With Herb starring Edward James Olmos, George Lopez, and Kathleen Quinlan.

Ross Marks directed the Optimism Entertainment/Rio Road Entertainment comedy about a man’s (Olmos) progress from relative obscurity to a golfing world championship with his faithful motorcyclist friend (Lopez) by his side.

Billy Boyd and Christopher McDonald round out the key cast. Mark Medoff (Children Of A Lesser God) wrote the screenplay to the story, based on the novel by Joe S.

Mark Medoff, who won a Tony Award for writing Children of a Lesser God and earned an Oscar nom for its movie adaptation, died Tuesday at Mesilla Valley Hospice in Las Cruces, Nm. He was 79.

Children of a Lesser God won the 1980 Tony for Best Play and ran for more than two years and 880 performances at Broadway’s Longacre Theatre. The show about a hearing speech teacher at a school for the deaf who falls for a deaf custodian was turned into a 1986 feature directed by Randa Haines. The film starred William Hurt and Marlee Matlin, who won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for the role. Hurt and supporting actress Piper Laurie also scored Oscar noms, and the film was up for Best Picture but lost to Platoon.

A revival of Children of a Lesser God played on the Main Stem for six weeks last year. Medoff also penned Prymate,...

Brandon Victor Dixon, Vanessa Hudgens, Kiersey Clemons and Jordan Fisher will be among the stars living la vie boheme in January when Fox stages its live musical presentation of the Broadway smash Rent.

Fox announced the full cast today, including Brennin Hunt, Mario, Tinashe and RuPaul Drag Race star Valentina (see below for full list of cast and their characters).

Rent, Jonathan Larson’s Tony Award- and Pulitizer Prize-winning musical set during the early AIDS era long before New York City’s East Village had cleaned up to become a rich-person playground, opened Off Broadway in 1996 and, later that year, transferred to Broadway’s Nederlander Theatre. The production ran on Broadway for 12 years.

Larson died of a heart condition the night before his musical’s first Off Broadway performance.

Fox will air the three-hour musical event on Sunday, January 27, live at 7 p.m. Et and tape-delayed Pt.

Here is the full cast,...

Fox's live rendition of Jonathan Larson's beloved Rent now has a cast.

Vanessa Hudgens (Grease Live), singer Tinashe, Valentina (RuPaul's Drag Race), Kiersey Clemons (Dope, The Flash feature), Brandon Victor Dixon (Jesus Christ Superstar Live), Jordan Fisher (Grease Live), Brennin Hunt (Walking With Herb) and Grammy winner Mario (Empire) will star in the Jan. 27 live musical, with Keala Settle (The Greatest Showman) performing the famed track "Seasons of Love."  

Based on Larson's Tony-winning musical, Rent is a rock musical loosely based on La Boheme that tells the story of a group ...

George Lopez had a terrible time at Hooters, thanks to one giant boob who goaded him into a fight ... and TMZ has the video. The incident went down Sunday night in New Mexico, where George had spent the week filming the movie "Walking with Herb." As you can see ... the guy was lying in wait for George when he started recording. That's when you hear the guy say, "Here comes my boy, George," and then all hell breaks loose.

Exclusive: Edward James Olmos, George Lopez, and Major Crimes and Battlestar Galactica alum Mary McDonnell are set for Walking With Herb, a faith-based film based on the novel by Joe S. Bullock. Ross Marks is at the helm, directing the feature from a screenplay adapted by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Mark Medoff (Children of A Lesser God).

Here’s a synopsis: Sixty-five-year-old Joe (Olmos) is struggling with his faith as his three-year-old granddaughter and her father have just died. While at work, he receives a message from God on his computer screen that tells him he has been chosen to deliver an inspirational message to the world that the seemingly impossible is possible. God tells Joe, a former amateur golfer, that he is going to play in the World Golf Championship tournament, and if his faith is strong enough, he will win. Joe embarks on this spiritual...