Tituss Burgess Cast as Rooster in NBC's Upcoming Annie Live! Special: 'Rooster's Outta the Bag'
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Tituss Burgess has joined the cast of NBC's upcoming Annie Live! Special.
The six-time Emmy-nominated actor will take on the role of Rooster Hannigan, one of the antagonists in the musical and brother of Miss Hannigan — who will be played by Taraji P. Henson. The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt alum follows in the footsteps of Tim Curry and Alan Cumming, who have played the role of Rooster.
"I've always wanted to be a villain," said Burgess, 42, per The Hollywood Reporter Wednesday.
Burgess celebrated the casting news on social media the same day, reposting THR.
"The Rooster's outta the bag!!!! "ANNIE" LIVE! here we come 😍🐔" the actor wrote on Instagram and Twitter.
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RELATED: Taraji P. Henson Cast as Miss Hannigan in NBC's Upcoming Annie Live! Special
Along with Burgess and Henson, Nicole Scherzinger and Harry Connick Jr. have also been cast in the musical, set to star as Grace Farrell and Daddy Warbucks, respectively. The starring role of Annie has yet to be announced.
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Based on the Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, the beloved musical features music by Charles Strouse and lyrics by Martin Charnin, adapted for the stage by Thomas Meehan.
This will be the sixth live musical the Peacock network has aired since reviving the trend with 2013's The Sound of Music Live!. Other musical events have included 2014's Peter Pan Live!, 2015's The Wiz Live!, 2016's Hairspray Live! and 2018's Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert.
All productions have been executive produced by Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron, who will return for Annie Live! Lear deBessonet will direct, while Alex Rudzinski — whose live musical credits include Grease Live! and Rent: Live — will act as live television director and executive producer.
Annie Live! will air December 2 on NBC.
