‘Grease’ Prequel: Meet the Cast of ‘Rise of the Pink Ladies’

Lesley Goldberg
·2 min read
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More than two years after it was first announced, filming has begun the Grease prequel TV series.

Originally titled Rydell High and ordered at HBO Max before moving to Paramount+ and gaining a new title, Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies has unveiled its cast and begun production in Vancouver.

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Set four years before the beloved original feature film, the series takes place in 1954. Here’s how the ViacomCBS streamer describes it: “before rock ‘n’ roll ruled, before the T-Birds were the coolest in school, four fed-up outcasts dare to have fun on their own terms, sparking a moral panic that will change Rydell High forever.”

Here’s the cast: Marisa Davila (Atypical) as Jane, newcomer Cheyenne Isabel Wells as Olivia, Ari Notartomaso (Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin) as Cynthia, Tricia Fukuhara (Dante Falls) as Nancy, Shanel Bailey (The Equalizer) as Hazel, Madison Thompson (Ozark) as Susan, Johnathan Nieves (Penny Dreadful: City of Angels) as Richie, Jason Schmidt (48 Hours) as Buddy, Maxwell Whittington-Cooper (When They See Us) as Wally and Jackie Hoffman (Garden State) as assistant principal McGee. (Further information about the characters was not immediately available.)

Annabel Oakes (Atypical, Transparent) created the series, penned the script and serves as showrunner. Oakes, Temple Hill’s Marty Bowen, Adam Fishbach, Picturestart’s Erik Feig and Sammie Falvey as well as Grace Gilroy will exec produce. Alethea Jones (Made for Love, Evil) will direct the pilot plus two additional episodes and also be credited as an exec producer. Jamal Sims oversees choreography, and Grammy nominee Justin Tranter will handle the music. The 10-episode series is produced by Paramount TV Studios and is due this year.

“We are thrilled to unveil our new original series that will introduce an incredible cast of young stars in the making and electrifying musical numbers you will fall in love with,” said Nicole Clemens, president of Paramount Television Studios and Paramount+ original scripted series. “Annabel and Alethea have managed to brilliantly capture the spirit of the iconic beloved classic film which like Rise of the Pink Ladies, is both set in the past but relevant to the present.”

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