Uzo Aduba Will Star in The Residence, a White House Murder Mystery from Shonda Rhimes

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."

Netflix is clearly is getting its money's worth out of that nine-figure production deal that Shonda Rhimes reportedly signed in 2017. Shonda Rhimes and her longtime Shondaland partner Betsy Beers will executive produce The Residence, a murder mystery drama that Netflix ordered straight to series. The drama will use Kate Andersen Brower's The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House as a jumping off point to tell a fictional mystery story.

The Residence will be a "screwball whoddunit," according to Netflix.

In March 2022, Netflix released the official logline for the show: "132 rooms. 157 suspects. One dead body. One wildly eccentric detective. One disastrous State Dinner. The Residence is a screwball whodunnit set in the upstairs, downstairs, and backstairs of the White House, among the eclectic staff of the world’s most famous mansion." Think Downton Abbey meets Agatha Christie.

Uzo Aduba will star in the show.

Aduba will star as Cordelia Cupp, a consulting detective for the Metropolitan Police Department.

The rest of the ensemble cast includes:

• Andre Braugher as White House chief usher A.B. Wynter

• Susan Kelechi Watson as Jasmine Haney, a young and rising White House assistant usher

• Jason Lee as Tripp Morgan, President Morgan’s younger brother

• Ken Marino as Harry Hollinger, President Morgan’s oldest friend, closest adviser, and most trusted confidante

• Edwina Findley as Sheila Cannon, White House butler

• Molly Griggs as Lilly Schumacher, President Perry Morgan’s social secretary

• Al Mitchell as Rollie Bridgewater, head butler/maître d'

• Dan Perrault as Colin Trask, head of the presidential detail for the Secret Service

• Bronson Pinchot as Didier Gotthard, White House executive pastry chef

• Isiah Whitlock Jr. as Larry Dokes, Metropolitan PD chief of police

• Mary Wiseman as Marvella, White House executive chef

The role of President Perry Morgan has yet to be cast.

Paul William Davies is the showrunner.

Longtime Shondaland figure Paul William Davies will be the executive producer and showrunner for The Residence. Davies was a writer-producer on Scandal, and created and executive produced the ABC/Shondaland legal drama For the People—which starred none other than Regé-Jean Page of Bridgerton fame.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Davies has a doctorate in history from UC Berkeley, clerked for a federal judge in L.A., and practiced law for more than a decade before making the transition to television.

What is the book The Residence about?

Not unlike Downton Abbey, but for the most famous house in America, Brower's book is a deep dive into the people who keep 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue running: the staff of the First Family's residence. The Residence spans from the Kennedy administration to Obama's and features first-person stories and extensive interviews with current and former staff members.

Shonda Rhimes's Netflix dominance continues.

The Residence is one of many projects Shonda Rhimes is creating for Netflix. The slate includes Inventing Anna, a show centered around Anna Delvey, the notorious grifter who conned rich New Yorkers out of cash, and Bridgerton, the wildly popular Regency romance series.

“I wanted the new Shondaland to be a place where we expand the types of stories we tell," Rhimes said, "where my fellow talented creatives could thrive and make their best work and where we as a team come to the office each day filled with excitement."

When does The Residence premiere?

There will be eight episodes in The Residence; no premiere date has been set yet. We will update as soon as we learn more.

You Might Also Like

• 12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion

• 13 Beauty Tools to Up Your At-Home Facial Game