Tony Award-winner Nikki M. James is affirming her presence in primetime! The Broadway belter recently signed on to join theater heartthrob Aaron Tveit in the new CBS series, “BrainDead.”
James, whose other TV credits include “Law & Order” and a recurring spot on “The Good Wife,” will take on the role of Rochelle, a medical resident who, after her father’s mysterious death, teams up with series protagonist Laurel (Mary Elizabeth Wilstead) to solve the mystery and save others from the same fate.
“We fell in love with Nikki the first time we saw her in The Book of Mormon,” executive producers Robert and Michelle King praised. “Her work on ‘The Good Wife’ has only increased our admiration, and we couldn’t be more excited that she’s joining the cast of ‘BrainDead.'”
The petite powerhouse made news when she won the 2011 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role as Nabalungi in the record breaking hit Broadway musical The Book of Mormon. Additional Broadway credits include All Shook Up, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and most recently, the coveted role of Eponine in the Broadway revival of Les Misérables.
According to press notes, “BrainDead” is a new comic-thriller set in Washington D.C. that tells the story of Laurel, “a young, fresh-faced Hill staffer whose first job in Washington, D.C. leads her to discover two things: The government has stopped working, and alien spawn have come to earth and eaten the brains of a growing number of Congressmen and Hill staffers.”
Hey, “Independence Day” made it work, so as long as Nikki is there, so is Broadway Black! The extraterrestrial series has received a 13-episode order and is set to premiere summer of 2016.
