Sean Astin Joins TNT's "The Alienist"

Sean Astin Joins TNT's "The Alienist"
Based on the international best-selling novel by Caleb Carr, "The Alienist" is a psychological thriller set in the Gilded Age of New York City in 1896, a city of vast wealth, extreme poverty and technological innovation.

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[via press release from TNT]

    

Sean Astin Joins TNT's "The Alienist"
Daniel Brühl, Luke Evans, Dakota Fanning, Robert Wisdom, Q'orianka Kilcher, Matt Lintz, Matthew Shear and Douglas Smith Also Star in Drama Series Based on Caleb Carr's Bestseller, Co-Produced by Paramount Television and Studio T

Sean Astin (Stranger Things) is set to star as Theodore Roosevelt, the Police Commissioner for New York City, in TNT's The Alienist, the eagerly anticipated series based on the Anthony Award-winning New York Times bestseller by Caleb Carr. Astin joins fellow series regulars Daniel Brühl (Rush) as forensic psychologist Dr. Laszlo Kreizler; Luke Evans (The Girl on The Train) as newspaper illustrator John Moore; and Dakota Fanning (American Pastoral) as Sara Howard, a headstrong secretary at Police Headquarters, who together investigate a series of brutal murders i n New York during the Gilded Age.

The Alienist is currently shooting in Budapest, Hungary, with BAFTA-nominated director Jakob Verbruggen (Black Mirror) at the helm. The series is a co-production of Paramount Television and Turner's Studio T. Emmy Award(R) winner Cary Fukunaga (True Detective), Academy Award(R) winner Eric Roth (Forrest Gump), Academy Award(R) nominee Hossein Amini (Drive) and Anonymous Content's Steve Golin and Rosalie Swedlin serve as executive producers, along with Verbruggen.

Based on the international best-selling novel by Caleb Carr, The Alienist is a psychological thriller set in the Gilded Age of New York City in 1896, a city of vast wealth, extreme poverty and technological innovation. When a series of haunting, gruesome murders of boy prostitutes grips the city, newly appointed police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt calls upon criminal psychologist (aka alienist) Dr. Laszlo Kreizler (Brühl) and newspaper illustrator John Moore (Evans) to conduct the investigation in secret. They are aided by a makeshift crew of singular characters, among them the intrepid Sara Howard (Fanning), a young secretary on Roosevelt's staff who is determined to become the first female police detective in New York City. Using the emerging disciplines of psychology and early forensic investigation techniques, this band of social outsiders tracks down one of New York City's first serial killers.

Additional series regulars include Robert Wisdom (The Wire) as Cyrus, Kreizler's valet, a man with a dark past who has been reformed by Kreizler; Q'orianka Kilcher (The New World) as Mary, Kreizler's mute maid with whom he shares a special unspoken connection; Matt Lintz (Pixels) as Stevie, a tough, young boy employed by Dr. Kreizler as a driver and errand boy; and Matthew Shear (Mistress America) and Douglas Smith (Miss Sloane) as Lucius and Marcus Isaacson, twin brothers who help unravel the disturbing mystery.

Astin will play the brilliant, ambitious, but principled Theodore Roosevelt, a crusading reformist determined to clear up corruption in the police force he now heads. While usually inured to crime in New York, Roosevelt becomes outraged over the fact that children are being murdered in his city and develops a warlike zeal to find the perpetrator.

Astin is an actor/director best known for his film roles as Sam in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the title character in Rudy and Mikey in the popular classic The Goonies. In addition to The Alienist, Astin will star in the second season of Netflix's Stranger Things and in Finn Taylor's next film, Unleashed, with Kate Micucci. His television work includes such projects as Guillermo Del Toro's The Strain and the fifth season of 24. For the big screen, Astin directed and produced the short film Kangaroo Court, which earned him an Academy Award(R) nomination for Best Live Action Short Film. Astin also directed and produced the live action short film The Long and Short of It, an official entry in the Sundance Film Festival. The veteran actor also has voiced many animated characters in film and on television, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Bunnicula, Justice League, Special Agent Oso, Micronauts and Minecraft: Story Mode.

About Paramount Television
Paramount Television develops and finances a wide range of creative television programming across all media platforms. Its robust slate of programming with top distributors includes the five-time Emmy(R)-winning live musical event Grease: Live (FOX), which holds the record-breaking telecast title with more than 17 million viewers worldwide and is ranked as the #1 most social live musical event ever; the Emmy(R)-nominated Nickelodeon hit School of Rock'; Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (Amazon); Thirteen Reasons Why (Netflix); Maniac (Netflix); Shooter (USA); Berlin Station (EPIX); The Alienist (TNT); Galaxy Quest (Amazon) and The Warriors (Hulu). Paramount Digital Entertainment (PDE) has developed series such as Bajillion Dollar Propertie$ (NBCUniversal's Seeso), Hotwives of Orlando and Hotwives of Las Vegas (HULU), Resident Advisors (HULU), Beef (Fullscreen) and the one-hour special Crash Test (Comedy Central and Vimeo). Paramount Television and Paramount Digital Entertainment are part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a subsidiary of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), a global content company with premier television, film and digital entertainment brands.

About Anonymous Content
Founded in 1999 by Managing Partner Steve Golin, Anonymous Content is a leading management and Film, TV and Commercial production company. Anonymous Content manages the careers of many of the world's most renowned and innovative directors, writers, actors and comedians, working closely with them to achieve their goals by both creating and finding opportunities for them, whether in feature films, television, commercials, music videos or brand integrated content. Anonymous Content's clients have been recognized with Academy Awards(R), Emmys(R), Golden Globes(R), Tony Awards(R), Pulitzer Prizes(R) and other prestigious awards. The company's award-winning Film & TV division boasts many commercially successful and critically-acclaimed works, including Babel, Winter's Bone, Being John Malkovich, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, 50 First Dates, Collateral Beauty, The Revenant an d Best Picture Academy Award winner Spotlight. The company's TV slate includes True Detective (HBO), The Knick (Cinemax), Mr. Robot (USA Network), Schitt's Creek (POP) and Berlin Station (EPIX), as well as upcoming titles 13 Reasons Why (Netflix), The Alienist (TNT) and Maniac (Netflix). Through its Commercial work, Anonymous Content is also the driving creative force behind countless top brands, including Prada, Nike and Coke. In 2016, Anonymous Content received a substantial minority investment from Emerson Collective, the organization founded and run by Laurene Powell Jobs, to allow the firm to expand its production offerings in socially-relevant content aimed at inspiring change. For more information, visit www.anonymouscontent.com.

About TNT
TNT, a division of Turner, ranks among cable's Top 5 networks with young adults and is home to one of cable's most popular slate of original series, including Animal Kingdom, Good Behavior, The Last Ship, Major Crimes, The Librarians and the upcoming Will, Claws, The Alienist, The Race Card and more. TNT also presents popular shows like Arrow, Supernatural, Bones and Castle; primetime specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards(R) and the iHeartRadio Music Awards; and championship sports coverage, including the NBA and the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship.

Turner, a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, sports, animation and young adult multi-platform content for consumers around the world. Turner brands and businesses include CNN/U.S., HLN, CNN International and CNN.com, TBS, TNT, TCM, truTV, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Adult Swim, Turner Sports, Bleacher Report, FilmStruck, Super Deluxe, iStreamPlanet and ELEAGUE.