By Joe Otterson
TV Reporter
ABC is continuing to build out the cast of “The Brides,” the vampire soap opera pilot from the team behind “Riverdale.”
Katherine Reis, Sophia Tatum, and Chris Mason have all been cast in the pilot. It was announced on Monday that Gina Torres would play one of the lead roles as well.
The project is described as a contemporary reimagining of “Dracula” with a trio of female leads. The show would follow these immortal women and the things they do to maintain wealth, prestige, legacy, and their nontraditional family.
Reis will star as Lily Stevens. The youngest of the three Brides of Dracula, Lily is a striving singer in New York City whose relationship to a news reporter threatens to tear apart her marriage to her “sisters.” In her former life, she braved the streets of Jack the Ripper’s London, until being “rescued” by Dracula.
Tatum will play the series regular role of Justine Strang. Completely friendless and new to town, Justine shows up at the studio of Renée Pélagie (not yet cast), a top modeling agent in New York City — and the “middle” bride of Dracula. Renée soon takes this young, hungry, aspiring model under her wing, unaware that Justine may have a past with Dracula as well.
Popular on Variety
Mason will play Roland Grant. Described as a stylish real estate mogul, he arrives in town to challenge Cleo (Torres) — the “Queen of New York City real estate,” and the leader of the brides of Dracula — for professional supremacy. With secret ties to Dracula, Roland has a personal stake in the destruction of the Brides.
Reis currently stars in the Broadway production of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.” Her past television roles include “Claws,” “Rise,” “Chicago P.D.,” “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” and “Bull.”
She is repped by Paradigm.
Should “The Brides” get ordered to series, it would mark Tatum’s network television debut. Her one TV credit to date is in the recently-launched Netflix series “I Am Not Okay with This.” She has previously worked as a professional dancer and model.
She is repped by Global Artists Agency and Next Management.
Mason recently recurred on “Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists.” He was also a series regular in the third season of the ITV/BBC America drama “Broadchurch.” He will appear in a recurring role in the upcoming second season of “Dirty John.”
He is repped by UTA in the U.S, 3 Arts Entertainment, United Agents in the U.K., and Sloane Offer.
“The Brides” was first put into development at NBC in 2015 with a pilot production commitment, though that version ultimately did not move forward. This is a new version of the project, which was first confirmed to be in development again in October though no network was attached at that time.
A Variety and iHeartRadio Podcast
The Business of Entertainment