With Boardwalk Empire and The Newsroom reaching their final seasons, two of HBO’s major programs will soon be off the cable network. This leaves a bit of a hole in their summer and fall line-up, but the series that is likely to grip the timeslot of those Emmy-winning programs is an upcoming untitled rock ‘n’ roll drama from producers Martin Scorsese, Boardwalk Empire scribe Terence Winter, Breaking Bad writer George Mastras and rock god Mick Jagger. That electrifying foursome has made the drama pilot one of the most anticipated in television history, and a cast is now starting to come together.
Today, rising star Juno Temple becomes the latest to join the ensemble of the untitled drama. The Killer Joe actress, who will appear in Maleficent and Sin City: A Dame to Kill For this summer, will play Jamie Vine. Deadline describes Vine as “an ambitious assistant in the A&R department at the label, American Century Records… [who] uses her keen abilities to manipulate people and blend into the various subcultures of the New York music underground.”
Temple is another stellar addition to what is bound to be a rich ensemble, one that Scorsese can easily assemble. Bonny Cannavale, fresh off his Emmy-winning turn in Boardwalk Empire, is set to play the American Century Records executive Richie Finestra, hoping to resurrect his dying label with fresh new talent. Olivia Wilde hopped on board the project this week as well in the role of Finestra’s wife, Devon.
Scorsese and Jagger are both experts on the drug- and sex-fueled lifestyle of classic rock and roll and 1970s New York City, while Mastras and The Wolf of Wall Street scribe Winter know a thing or two about substance abuse stories. Meanwhile, Temple is an inspired choice, and it is likely that Scorsese cast her based on her upbringing. Her father, Julien Temple, is a noted documentary filmmaker who made short films with The Sex Pistols and then various rock-fueled docs throughout his career (notably, Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten).
The untitled project is heading into production this summer, with Scorsese directing the pilot, which Winter and showrunner Mastras will write. We’ll keep you posted when we hear more.
