Zoe Saldaña has a new co-star in the upcoming Paramount+ series Lioness. Today it was revealed that Locke & Key star Laysla De Oliveira will be joining the cast to star opposite the Guardians of the Galaxy actress. The critically acclaimed co-creator of Yellowstone, Taylor Sheridan, is the mind behind Lioness, which means it’s bound to be another action packed, thoughtful piece of television.
The series is centered around a real-life CIA program and will focus on Cruz Manuelos (De Oliveira). Manuelos was one of the Marine’s best and brightest soldiers who was then picked up by the CIA’s Lioness Engagement Team. Driven, determined, and tied to her duties, the program is lucky to have the new recruit as they set their sights on a terrorist organization. Saldaña will step into the role of commander, Joe. A natural-born leader, Joe cares deeply about her undercover agents and pushes them to be the best they can be through rigid training and scheduling. Being an empowering project based around women, the series will come as a breath of fresh air in an otherwise male dominated genre.
Along with starring in the show, Saldaña will work behind the camera in a role as executive producer, where she will be joined by the Academy Award-winning Nicole Kidman, who will be representing her Blossom Films production company. Tom Brady will also serve as showrunner and executive produce alongside Sheridan, David C. Glasser, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, David Hutkin, Geyer Kosinski, and Jill Wagner.
De Oliveira rose to prominence for her role as Dodge in Netflix’s Locke & Key. The streaming service’s series adapted its story from the Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodgiguez comic book series of the same name and has been renewed to head into its third season. De Oliveira’s Dodge is the show’s main villain, a demonic entity who is constantly challenging the leading characters. Outside of Locke & Key, De Oliveira has starred in the drama feature, Guest of Honour, and Vincenzo Natali’s adaptation of Stephen King and Hill’s novella, In the Tall Grass. The Canadian native also nabbed a leading role in 2018’s indie-romance film Acquainted and John Ridley’s star-studded sci-fi flick, Needle in a Timestack.
With an ever-growing cast of dynamite performers, Lioness is shaping up to be an action packed, women powered, juggernaut of a series. While other details are being kept under wraps, we do know the series plans to begin production in June of this year.
via Collider