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The “Dead Boy Detectives” pilot at HBO Max has found its main cast, Variety has learned exclusively from sources.
George Rexstrew, Jayden Revri (“The Lodge”), and Kassius Nelson (“Last Night in Soho,” “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events”) will star in the three lead roles. Rexstrew is a recent graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, and “Dead Boy Detectives” would mark his onscreen debut.
Based on the DC Comics characters created by Neil Gaiman, the one-hour series would follow the Dead Boy Detectives — Charles Rowland (Revri) and Edwin Paine (Rexstrew) — who decided not to enter the afterlife in order to stay on earth and investigate crimes involving the supernatural. They are joined by Crystal Palace (Nelson), a living psychic medium.
In addition, sources say that the cast also includes: Alexander Calvert (“Supernatural,” “Arrow”) as Thomas The Cat King; Briana Cuoco (“The Flight Attendant,” “Harley Quinn”) as Jenny, described as a mildly punk butcher and a confidant of Crystal Palace; Jenn Lyon (“Claws,” “Justified”) as Esther, described as a witch obsessed with youth and immortality; Yuyu Kitamura (“The Expatriates,” “Mother Tongue”) as Niko, a boarding school student intent on joining the Dead Boy Detectives agency who now lives above Jenny’s butcher shop; and Ruth Connell (“Supernatural,” “For the Love of George”) who will play Night Nurse, a demon that controls the flow of souls in the afterlife. Connell previously played that character in the HBO Max-DC series “Doom Patrol.”
Reps for HBO Max and WBTV declined to comment on the castings.
Sebastian Croft and Ty Tennant played Rowland and Paine respectively in the third season of “Doom Patrol,” while Madalyn Horcher played Palace. None of those three are attached to the pilot.
Steve Yockey is writing and executive producing the pilot, which Variety exclusively reported on in September. Jeremy Carver is also executive producing. Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and David Madden will executive produce via Berlanti Productions. Warner Bros. Television is the studio. Production is currently underway.
Carver developed “Doom Patrol” for television and also serves as showrunner and executive producer on that series. He and Yockey previously worked together on “Supernatural,” another WBTV production. Berlanti Productions also produces “Doom Patrol,” with the company under a rich overall deal at WBTV.
Should “Dead Boy Detectives” go to series, it would be the latest of Gaiman’s works to get adapted for the screen. Starz currently airs “American Gods,” while Netflix recently released the final season of “Lucifer” and is prepping a series adaptation of “The Sandman.” Gaiman currently has an overall deal at Amazon, with that streamer having aired the series version of “Good Omens.” A second season is on the way for that show while Amazon is also readying a series based on Gaiman’s “Anansi Boys.”
Rexstrew is repped by United Agents. Revri is repped by Revolution Talent and Luber Roklin Entertainment. Nelson is repped by Conway van Gelder Grant and Luber Roklin Entertainment. Calvert is repped by Play Management and Canopy Media Partners. Cuoco is repped by SDB Partners, Thruline Entertainment, and Hansen Jacobson. Lyon is repped by SDB Partners, TalentWorks, Principal Entertainment, and Hansen Jacobson. Kitamura is repped by Take 3 Talent. Connell is repped by Identity Agency Group and Luber Roklin Entertainment.
(Pictured, from left to right: George Rexstrew, Jayden Revri, Kassius Nelson)
