“Bones” is digging up a few quirky guest stars this season, and a favorite from “The Fosters” will stop by “How To Get Away With Murder.” Plus, weeks ahead of Ed Westwick’s gritty ’80s drama debut in “Wicked City,” ABC has cast his character’s mother, who will appear in flashbacks.
“Astronaut Wives Club” alum Haley Strode will play Kent’s (Westwick) mother in a flashback scene with a seven-year-old Kent during episode four of ABC’s “Wicked City,” Variety has learned. Though she’s currently set for one episode, insiders note that her role is being eyed to expand throughout the season.
Named Rita Forrester, Kent’s mother (Strode) is described as a delusional Marilyn Monroe wannabe who longs to be an actress and relies on her young son for emotional support. Storyline details are scarce, but given the dangerous nature of the former “Gossip Girl” star’s character, it seems likely Strode’s mother/son scenes will shed light on Kent’s background, as he grew up to be a cold-blooded murderer on the Sunset Strip. The guest-star gig reunites Strode with her “Astronaut Wives Club” director J. Miller Tobin, who has directing duties on “Wicked City.” Strode is repped by Seven Summits Pictures & Management, and Paradigm.
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“Bones” is getting a visit from two “Impractical Jokers,” Variety has exclusively learned. Members Sal Vulcano and James Murray, who star on TruTV’s hidden camera series, will guest star in an upcoming November episode of the long-running Fox drama, playing Sal and Murr, sanitation workers — and jokesters — who discover a body in a street sweeper.
Brenda Strong has also been cast in the same November episode of “Bones,” which is titled “The Senator in the Street Sweeper.” The former “Desperate Housewives” regular (who also starred in TNT’s “Dallas” and will star in Season 3 of the CW’s “The 100”) will play a U.S. senator who worked closely with the victim in the episode. It’s not clear if Strong will share scenes with the “Impractical Jokers.”
Meanwhile, Laurence Fishburne will play Nelson Mandela in the upcoming BET miniseries “Madiba.” The six-hour series, directed by Kevin Hooks (“Prison Break”) and executive produced by Mandela’s grandson, Kweku Mandela, is based on two of Mandela’s books: “Conversations With Myself” and “Nelson Mandela by Himself.”
Named after Mandela’s Thembu clan, “Madiba” focuses on the early days of the young activist, who helped alleviate South Africa’s political unrest during the early 1960s. Production will begin on the series in early 2016.
“The Fosters” star Sherri Saum will guest star in an episode of “How To Get Away With Murder,” Variety has confirmed. Per usual in Shondaland, details on Saum’s spot, which was first reported by TVLine, are being kept under wraps.
