Ruben Santiago Hudson, Richard Kind, Lavel Schley and Olivia Luccardi have joined the CBS drama pilot East New York. They will star as series regulars opposite Amanda Warren who will lead CBS’ police drama.
Co-written by William Finkelstein and Mike Flynn, East New York centers on Regina Haywood (Warren), is the newly promoted deputy inspector of East New York, an impoverished, working-class neighborhood at the eastern edge of Brooklyn. She leads a diverse group of officers and detectives, some of whom are reluctant to deploy her creative methods of serving and protecting during the midst of social upheaval and the early seeds of gentrification.
READ: Adrienne Warren, Sheila Atim Join Viola Davis in The Woman King
Hudson will play Marvin Sandeford who could have become a boss or a detective, but he never wanted to be anything but a street cop. He’s very opinionated and given to quick, intractable judgments, but not without compassion. No one knows as much about East New York as he does.
Kind plays Capt. Stan Yenko, a captain who hides his loneliness and insecurity behind a gregarious demeanor and quest for camaraderie with everyone around him.
Schley portrays Andre Bentley, a patrol officer trainee from an upper middle-class background in Westchester. He was never supposed to become a cop, which was half the reason he became one.
Luccardi has been cast as Brandy Quinlan, a patrol officer who had a working class upbringing until she ran away from an abusive home and lived on the street. She’s a go-getter and driven to prove herself.
Warren’s character Regina Haywood is described as a serious street cop turned deputy inspector. She is sharply dressed and serious about her job, her father and her dog are the only two souls with whom she can be fully vulnerable.
The project was given a pilot order last month. No other cast members have been announced.
READ: Tahj Mowry Joins Chi McBride in CBS Bowling Comedy How We Roll
The pilot’s executive producers are Finkelstein, Flynn, Mike Robin from Skyemac Productions, Christine Holder and Mark Holder from Wonder Street. Andrew Maher from Skyemac is a co-executive producer. Warner Bros. Television is the studio.
East New York marks Warren’s CBS return. Prior to this project she did major arcs on Madam Secretary and NCIS: New Orleans. She also starred in the USA series The Purge and appeared in Apple TV+’s Dickinson, HBO’s The Leftovers and Nat Geo’s Genius: Aretha.
Up next Warren will be seen in the upcoming Amazon feature “The Burial” alongside Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones. She also is starring in The Woman King opposite Viola Davis.