Danielle Brooks, Asante Blackk Among Cast of Netflix’s ‘Social Distance’
Danielle Brooks, Asante Blackk, Mike Colter, Oscar Nunez and Daphne Rubin-Vega are among the cast of Netflix’s upcoming anthology series “Social Distance,” the streamer announced Wednesday.
From Hilary Weisman Graham, who serves as creator and showrunner, the eight-part series is set in the first few months after the coronavirus pandemic sweeps the globe. Each episode is a standalone one that was shot remotely in the actors’ real-life homes across the country.
Brooks stars in an episode along with her real-life mother LaRita Brooks and her brother DJ Brooks. Also in that episode are Marsha Stephanie Blake and her real-life daughter Rocco Luna, Misha Brooks and Isabella Ferreira.
Blackk stars alongside his real-life father Ayize Ma’at; Lovie Simone is also in that same episode.
Colter’s episode also stars Okieriete Onaodowan, real-life spouses Heather Burns and Ajay Naidu, as well as Shakira Barrera, Helena Howard, and Steven Weber with his real-life son Jack Hohnen-Weber.
Nunez and Rubin-Vega star in the same episode, along with Rubin-Vega’s real-life husband Tom Costanzo and son Luca Costanzo; Guillermo Diaz; Miguel Sandoval; Camila Perez; Olli Haaskivi and Giana Aragon.
The other four episodes casts are:
Max Jenkins, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Peter Vack and Rana Roy; Peter Scanavino with real-life son Leo Bai-Scanavino, Ali Ahn, Tami Sagher, Barbara Rosenblat and Michael Mulheren; real-life spouses Becky Ann Baker and Dylan Baker with Sunita Mani and real-life spouses Raymond Anthony Thomas and Marcia Debonis; and Kylie Liya Page, Lachlan Watson, David Iacono, Will Meyers, Niles Fitch and Ava Demary.
“Many of these stories required casting actors who were quarantined with other actors,” said Graham. “That hurdle seriously hindered our options and so casting non-actors was sometimes essential. It was definitely a roll of the dice, but thankfully, we were thrilled to discover that talent really does breed talent. These family members may not have had aspirations to be in front of the camera when we first started, but they should all quit their day jobs immediately.”
Each episode will focus on specific character relationships and what they are experiencing in a time of social distancing and societal unrest.
“Time moves in such a strange way during quarantine and each episode is time-stamped,” Graham previously told Variety. “We tie each episode into something that was going on in real life, on social media or a news story that some character is coming across.”
Since many of the connections during self-isolation are done through technology, the show leans into that, as well, featuring Zoom and FaceTime calls, as well as scenes witnessed through the points of views of video doorbells and nanny cams, for example.
Tara Herrmann, Blake McCormick and Jenji Kohan also executive produce “Social Distance,” which is set to launch on Netflix this fall.
More from Variety
Immigration and Transgender Issues Fuel Isabel Sandoval's Drama 'Lingua Franca'
Margaret Qualley to Star in Dramedy Series 'Maid' at Netflix
Netflix Stock Shoots Up 11.6% to Near All-Time High on Optimism for Growth
Best of Variety
Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
