Michael Cimino to star in Disney+ Love, Simon series
James R | On 17, Aug 2019
Michael Cimino (Annabelle Comes Home) will star in Disney+’s new series based on the 20th Century Fox movie Love, a Simon.
The 2018 high school flick, adapted from Becky Albertali’s bestselling novel and directed by Greg Berlanti, won huge acclaim for its focus on a gay teen who is yet to come out to his family. Now, just a year later, with Disney having acquired Fox, the House of Mouse is already preparing to begin production on a TV spin-off from the crowd-pleasing hit.
The half-hour series is set in the world of the film and follows Victor (Cimino), a new student at Creekwood High School. With challenges at home and the struggle of getting to know a new city, not to mention his own sexual orientation, his journey of self-discovery can sometimes seem too much. He finds support in Simon, reaching out for help with navigating the ups and downs of high school.
Nick Robinson, who starred in the original movie, will produce and narrate the series. Other cast members include Ana Ortiz as Isabel, Victor’s smart and warm mother, James Martinez (One Day at a Time) as Armando, Victor’s father, Isabella Ferreira (Orange is the New Black) as Pilar, Victor’s sullen younger sister, and Mateo Fernandez as Adrian, Victor’s good-natured little brother. Johnny Sequoyah (Believe) also stars as Mia, Victor’s best friend, as well as Bebe Wood (The Real O’Neals, The New Normal) as Mia’s quirky and social media-obsessed friend, Lake. George Sear (Into the Badlands) joins them as Benji, Victor’s confident classmate, plus Anthony Turpel (The Bold and the Beautiful) as Felix, Victor’s awkward new neighbor, and Mason Gooding (Booksmart) as Andrew, Creekwood’s resident jock.
Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger, who wrote the movie, are executive producers and co-showrunners on the series, which falls under their overall deal at 20th Century Fox TV. Several of the movie’s producers are also EPs, including Marty Bowen and Isaac Klausner of Temple Hill and Pouya Shahbazian, alongside Grand Hotel exec producer/showrunner Brian Tanen, Jason Ensler (The Passage), Adam Fishbach (Narcos), and Wyck Godfrey (I, Robot).
Production begins shortly in Los Angeles.