Topdog/Underdog Star Don Cheadle Prepares for New NBC Cop Drama

Variety is reporting that former off-Broadway Topdog/Underdog star and international film sensation Don Cheadle has sealed a first-look deal on a new television drama with NBC through this Production Company Crescendo that he runs with with former managers Kay Liberman and Lenore Zerman.

In addition to several other television projects he has in development with ABC, TNT and FOX, including an adaptation of the feature The Star Chamber written by Zack Estrin (Prison Break) for ABC, this newest project for NBC is cop drama called Boston P.D. written by John Hlavin (The Shield).

According to Variety, the show is about "a homicide detective who discovers he shares a surprising connection to his new partner." Universal Media Studios is the confirmed studio.

To read the full report in Variety, click here.

Don Cheadle appeared off-Broadway in Suzan-Lori Parks Pulitzer-winning play Topdog/Underdog at The Public Theater. His other stage credits include Leon, Lena and Lenz at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis; The Grapes of Wrath and Liquid Skin at the Mixed Blood Theater in Minneapolis; Cymbeline at The New York Shakespeare Festival; ‘Tis a Pity She's a Whore at Chicago's Goodman Theater; and Athol Fugard's South African play Blood Knot at The Complex Theater in Hollywood. Cheadle rose to prominence on screen for his supporting roles in the Steven Soderbergh-directed films Out of Sight, Traffic, and Ocean's Eleven. In 2004, his lead role as Rwandan hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina in the genocide drama film Hotel Rwanda earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. He also campaigns for the end of genocide in Darfur, Sudan, and co-authored a book concerning the issue titled Not On Our Watch: The Mission To End Genocide In Darfur And Beyond.