Rory Kinnear, who starred in the original Penny Dreadful series, has joined Penny Dreadful: City of Angels for Showtime, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.
Kinnear, whose credits also include The Imitation Game, Spectre, Guerrilla, Years and Years, and the upcoming Bond 25, will play Dr. Peter Craft, a pediatrician and the leader of the German-American Bund, an organization he hopes will keep the United States isolated from the growing threat of war in Europe. In the original series, Kinnear played John Clare, aka The Creature, the immortal creation of Dr. Frankenstein (Mr. Mercedes’ Harry Treadaway).
Penny Dreadful creator John Logan said: “It’s no secret that Rory is one of my favorite actors on the planet, and working with him in the original series was inspiring. So much so that I wrote this part for him, and I’m thrilled he’ll be joining us in the City of Angels.”
Kinnear joins the previously announced Daniel Zovatto (Don’t Breathe), Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones), and Nathan Lane (The People v. O.J. Simpson).
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City of Angels will be set in 1938 Los Angeles, a time and place deeply infused with Mexican-American folklore and social tension. Rooted in the conflict between characters connected to the deity Santa Muerte and others allied with the Devil, Penny Dreadful: City of Angels will explore an exciting mix of the supernatural and the combustible reality of that period, creating new occult myths and moral dilemmas within a genuine historical backdrop.
Creator John Logan will still be the upcoming spin-off series’ creator, writer and executive producer. The show’s production is scheduled to start this year with Michael Aguilar (Kidding) to serve as executive producer. The new chapter is expected to feature new characters and storylines.
The Emmy nominated series ran on air for three seasons. Penny Dreadful is a unique mash-up of literary horror that followed the story of Vanessa Ives (Eva Green), Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett), and Sir Malcolm (Timothy Dalton) as they’ve worked together, at all costs, to vanquish the evil that relentlessly pursues them.
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