Deadline has reported in an exclusive that Maggie Grace (Lost, Taken) will join the cast of AMC’s upcoming series Thunder Road, a NASCAR drama, as a series regular. The series originates from co-creators John Fusco (The Shack, The Highwaymen) and Mark L. Smith (The Revenant, The Midnight Sky), and is anticipated to premiere next year.
Grace will join the series cast, which had been reported prior to be led by Matt Barr (The Layover, Hatfields & McCoys), Chase Stokes (Marked Men, Outer Banks), Michael Rooker (Guardians of the Galaxy, Peacemaker), and Dennis Quaid (The Day After Tomorrow, Happy Face).
The series, via Deadline, follows the multi-generational saga of the fictional Whitlock family, whose legacy in stock car racing is as deep as the family’s ties to the Southern hill country roots that shaped them. With ruthless competitors who will stop at nothing to dethrone and destroy them, the Whitlocks are a blue-collar dynasty at the edge of extinction – and the old king is fighting to hold onto the crown.
From Deadline:
The ensemble cast is led by Quaid, as racing legend Duane “The Wrecking Ball” Whitlock; a towering figure who built a racing empire from a legacy of moonshine runs and dirt tracks and refuses to let it die.
Grace will accompany the cast as Laney Whitlock, CEO of Whitlock Racing and Duane’s oldest (and smartest), who carries herself as though she owns the air you breathe. However, her sky-high standards lead her to hold herself personally accountable for the future of the Whitlock racing legacy. Throughout the series, she bears the brunt of everything that comes with running a race team, managing her own family, and holding her father’s genes at bay; fighting the instinct to be the same wrecking ball as her father.
On joining the series, from Deadline, Grace shared excitement for joining back with AMC and the series’ showrunner, Taylor Elmore (Justified, Tulsa King):
“I made friends for life on Fear The Walking Dead. I look forward to getting back in the saddle with AMC’s unique brand of storytelling, and to working with Taylor Elmore again.”
Detailed by Deadline, Grace previously held a series regular role on AMC’s Fear The Walking Dead, but she is best known for her portrayal of female lead Kim, opposite Liam Neeson (Love Actually, Widows) in the Taken franchise. She recently starred in Blackwater Lane from Lionsgate and appeared in NBC’s Suits: LA. Next, you can catch her in the upcoming Amazon MGM feature horror film Fiona as the eponymous lead character, of which she has now wrapped production. She is represented by Gersh.
Thunder Road is produced in association with NASCAR, with creator Fusco set to executive produce alongside showrunner Elmore. As listed by Deadline, EPs include; co-creator Smith, NASCAR Studio’s John Dahl (Red Rock West, The Lat Seduction) and Tim Clark (Old School, The Time Machine), and Syndicate Entertainment’s Cliff Roberts (Emancipation, The Midnight Sky). Gladys Cheng (Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!) is credited as producer.