Naturi Naughton (Notorious) is set to star opposite co-star Eve (Barbershop, UPN’s Eve) in upcoming ABC series Queens, according to Deadline. The brand new hour long series is executive produced by Zahir McGee (Scandal, For The People), Sabrina Wind (Skyward), and ABC Signature.
Queens is about four estranged and out of touch women somewhere in their 40s reuniting for a chance to recapture their fame. The four women attempt to regain the swagger and style they had as The Nasty Bitches – the girl group theory formed in the 90s that made them legends in the hip hop world, according to Deadline.
Naughton plays Jill aka Da Thrill, a founding member of The Nasty Bitches. She helped form the group with her friends back when they were all just in high school. Da Thrill lived life fast, she had rugged rhymes and as it turns out a troubling drug addiction. Fast forward to today Jill could be further from the life she once lived, according to Deadline. She’s a devout Catholic living a quiet life with her husband in Montana. Under the surface things are not what they seem. Jill is still haunted by the secrets from her past.
Eve plays another of the four women from the girl group, The Nasty Bitches. Eve, like Naughton got her start in the music industry before making the transition to acting. Brianna is the character Eve is set to play according to Deadline.
The Nasty Bitches coming back together allows for Jill to escape the complicated issues she deals with at home. Returning to her fast paced, rugged life of Da Thrill in the girl group conjures up some difficult memories. A friendship with a young rapper that she has almost nothing in common with will hilariously help Jill finally figure out the person she needs to be, according to Deadline.
Bringing her personal experience to the project Naughton was one third of the 90s girl group 3LW. She sang in the platinum selling group before transitioning to acting in shows like Starz’ flagship series Power. After successful run of six seasons as Tasha St. Patrick the series Power concluded last year, just before spawning spinoff series Power Book II: Ghost. She briefly appeared in the new spinoff series but is not series regular , according to Deadline.
Naughton won two NAACP Image Awards for her work on the Starz drama Power. The singer, songwriter and actress starred in the 2020 film Emperor, about an escaped slave who travels north and has a chance encounter with Fredrick Douglass and John Brown. Her other credits include Fox Searchlight’s Notorious, MGM’s remake of Fame, and appearances in Mad Men, and It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. Naughton also appeared in the Tony Award winning Broadway Musical Hairspray for three years.