Deadline reports that Netflix’s upcoming limited series, The Madness, has cast Marsha Stephanie Blake (Orange is the New Black, How to Get Away with Murder), John Ortiz (Peppermint, Replicas), Gabrielle Graham (Lucky Day, 21 Thunder), and Tamsin Topolski (Penny Dreadful, Holby City) opposite Colman Domingo (Euphoria, Fear the Walking Dead). The series is a conspiracy thriller from Chernin Entertainment. It was created by Stephen Belber (Match, Tape) who will be co-showrunner with VJ Boyd (Night Moves #1, Night Moves #2).
The Madness will follow Domingo’s character Muncie Daniels, a media pundit fighting for his innocence and life after witnessing a murder in the Poconos Woods and attempts to reconnect with his estranged family in order to survive.
Topolski will play Lucie Snipes, a woman who must choose between right and wrong; Graham will play Kallie, daughter of Muncie, Blake will play Elena Daniels, mother to Muncie’s 15-year-old son, and Ortiz will play Franco Quinones, a relentless FBI agent with strong convictions.
The series will be executive produced by Boyd, Belber, Peter Chernin (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Parental Guidance), Jenno Topping (Hidden Figures, The Greatest Showman), and Kaitlin Dahill (Jessica Jones, Runaways). The first two and final two episodes will be directed and executive produced by Clément Virgo (Lie with Me, Brother). Jessica Lowrey (Mad Men, Doom Patrol) and Quyen Tran (Smilf, Palm Springs) will each direct two episodes in between.
Graham starred in Brandon Cronenberg’s (Antiviral, Infinity Pool) Possessor and Lena Waithe’s (The Chi, Ready Player One) BET series Twenties. Ortiz starred in Promise Land on ABC as Joe Sandoval. Blake has received both Critics Choice and Emmy award nominations for her work in Netflix miniseries When They See Us as Linda McCray. Topolski has starred in Atlanta, The Rook, and Slow Horses.