CBS All Access has ordered the dark comedy-drama Why Women Kill to series from Mark Cherry, the creator of Desperate Housewives, CBS TV Studios, and Imagine Television Studios, according to Deadline. The show follows three women who live in three different decades and “will examine how the roles of women have changed, but their reaction to betrayal has not.”
“As much as we like to think that the institution of marriage has evolved over the past few decades, infidelity still has the ability to rock us to our core. Why Women Kill will explore what happens when women’s primal instincts are unleashed with unexpected and twisted consequences,” said Marc Cherry. “I couldn’t be more thrilled to be working with two exceptional companies to bring this series to life.”
Cherry will executive produce with Brian Grazer and Francie Calfo (Imagine), together with Acme Michael Hanel and Mindy Schultheis (Acome Productions). Imagine will co-produce together with CBS Television Studios, Deadline reports.
Ginnifer Goodwin (Once Upon A Time) plays Beth Ann, a housewife in the ’60s, Lucy Liu (Elementary) plays the socialite Simone who lives in the ’80s, and Kirby Howell-Baptiste (The Good Place) plays Taylor, the intelligent lawyer who lives in 2018. The other cast includes Sam Jaeger (Parenthood), Jack Davenport (Smash), Reid Scott (Veep), Sadie Calvano (Mom), Leo Howard (Kickin’ It), Alicia Coppola (The Young and the Restless) and Katie Finneran (Bloodline). and Alexandra Daddario (True Detective).
“Oh my gosh, I’m doing [Why Women Kill] now and it is kicking my ass in the best way,” Goodwin told TVLine. “It’s brain-hurting fun. A creative playground, for sure… [Cherry] is a master of words. Everything is a bit more theatrical and heightened and stylized and poetic and juicy.”
“Having worked with Marc 15 years ago on Desperate Housewives, it is clear he has captured lightning in a bottle again with the depiction of three women who are so richly drawn that they defy expectations at every turn,” said Julie McNamara, Executive Vice President of Original Content at CBS All Access. “Why Women Kill poses powerful cultural questions with Marc’s inimitable, biting wit, and we look forward to taking viewers on this wild ride,” McNamara added.
“As we began the process of building Imagine Television Studios, Marc was at the top of my list of premium writers who I knew could create an inventive, razor-sharp series to cut through the marketplace – and Marc delivered on all counts. We are honored and thrilled to be partners with Julie and her team at CBS All Access on this project and look forward to playing a key role in bringing viewers to their streaming service,” said Calfo.
The series will premiere on August 15, 2019.