Mary McDonnell is closing in on a more permanent return to the small screen.
The Major Crimes actress has landed her first series regular role since The Closer spinoff concluded.
According to Deadline, McDonnell is set to star opposite Justin Hartley (This Is Us) on the CBS adaptation of The Never Game.
McDonnell is set to play Mary Dove Shaw, Colter’s (Hartley) solid, strong, and uncompromising mother, who raised her three children on the remote California compound where her husband took them before his mysterious death.
She still lives there, self-reliant and upright, the emotional center of Colter’s restless life—and the key to the secrets of his past.
Based on the bestselling novel by Jeffrey Deaver, The Never Game features Hartley as lone-wolf survivalist Colter Shaw, who roams the country as a “reward seeker.”
He uses his expert tracking skills to help private citizens and law enforcement to solve all manner of mysteries while contending with his own fractured family.
“I couldn’t be happier that The Never Game is coming to CBS and that Colter Shaw will be brought to life on screen soon,” Hartley said in a statement last year when the project was announced to be in the works.
“When I read the book, I was immediately drawn to the character and the story; developing this project with Ken has been a true labor of love.”
“Colter is going to kick some serious ass, and I can’t wait for audiences to meet him.”
Hartley is coming off a six year stint on This Is Us, which wrapped its run earlier this year.
The Never Game is currently at pilot stage at the network, but given that Hartley and McDonnell are big draws, it would be a shocker if the series doesn’t get a pickup.
However, it will all come down to how the network’s other pilots come in.
What are your thoughts on the news?
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Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.
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