Charlize Theron is in business with Universal Cable Productions.
The actress/producer has aligned herself with UCP via a new first-look deal through her Denver and Delilah production banner, Jeff Wachtel, president and chief content officer for NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, announced at the Television Critics Association press tour in Pasadena, Calif., on Thursday.
Under the deal, Theron and UCP are already working on projects for USA Network, Bravo, NBC and Amazon, Wachtel noted.
Along with the new UCP deal, Denver and Delilah has hired former Epix executive vice president of original programming and development, Laverne McKinnon, to head the scripted television division of the production banner.
“I had the pleasure of working with Charlize recently and was determined to keep working with her once I joined Universal Cable Productions,” Dawn Olmstead, UCP’s executive vice president of development, said of the deal. “Charlize, Beth [Kono], and AJ’s [Dix] taste in material is stellar. I’m thrilled that Laverne has joined forces with them. Together they are rapidly growing an impressive slate of thought provoking stand out shows. I look forward to a fun, smart, and classy ride with this group.”
Added Theron, “Jeff and Dawn are fantastic partners. They are creative, smart and aggressive. They’ve been so supportive of our ambition and slate of projects. We’re excited to be collaborating with them.”
The projects that D&D and UCP are developing include the Andrea Abbate romantic comedy “Diblings,” which is being developed for NBC; and the action thriller “Pandora” for Amazon.
Other previous and upcoming Denver and Delilah projects include “American Express,” “Brain on Fire” and “Sympathy for Lady Vengeance.”
Read the full list of projects being developed under the deal below.
“Diblings,” a romantic comedy for NBC written by Andrea Abbate (“Accidentally on Purpose”), about a young, uptight business man and a rebellious purple-haired tattoo artist who will never be together but can’t stand being apart.
“The One,” a dramatic series for Bravo Media written by Roger Wolfson (“Saving Grace,” “The Closer”) that explores what it takes to succeed in the cutthroat world of billionaires and CEO’s through the eyes of those who are often overlooked…the assistants. A young woman and struggling street artist is hired to be the assistant to a visionary but enigmatic tech genius. The surprising relationship that forms between them begins to threaten everything the company has built.
“Pandora,” an action thriller series for Amazon written by Josh Pate (“Legends,” “Surface”), about former CIA agent Pandora whose curiosity unleashes worldwide “sleepers” who are the personification of all evils. As she battles to put the evils “back in the box,” she discovers that this was all architected by someone hell bent on vengeance against her. Jonas Pate (“Aquarius,” “Prime Suspect”) will direct the pilot.
“Mythos” for USA Network written by Spenser Cohen and produced by Anna Halberg is a high stakes, serialized adventure drama that reveals all we believed to be myth, from the Fountain of Youth to Atlantis, to be closely guarded truth, protected by two opposing orders, each with differing agendas for humanity
– Other projects in development with Universal Cable Productions include a blind script deal with comic book writer Greg Rucka, a stop motion animated series based on the wildly popular web series THE MOST POPULAR GIRLS IN SCHOOL, “Get Well Soon” written by Erika Cervantes and based on the book by Julie Halpern with Brendan Deneen from MacMillan Publishing attached to produce, and the novel A LIFE IN MEN by Gina Frangello.