Megan Hilty to Join Aaron Tveit, Nikki M. James & Beth Malone on CBS' Comic-Thriller BRAINDEAD

By: May. 12, 2016
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Megan Hilty is headed back to the small screen - opposite a slew of fellow Broadway alums!

BroadwayWorld has confirmed that the Tony nominee will appear on CBS' summer comic-thriller BRAINDEAD, starring Aaron Tveit. If that wasn't enough, the cast also boasts Tony winner Nikki M. James, Tony nominee Beth Malone, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Tony Shalhoub, and Jan Maxwell.

Hilty will take on the role of a cable news network anchor.

BRAINDEAD is set to premiere Monday, June 13 on CBS.

Megan Hilty is most recognizable for her portrayal of seasoned triple-threat Ivy Lynn in NBC's musical drama "Smash." She followed up the series with a starring role on the comedy "Sean Saves the World." This spring, Hilty received critical acclaim for her role of Brooke Ashton in the Roundabout Theater Company's revival of "Noises Off." She has earned nominations for a Tony Award, Drama Desk Award and Drama League Award and won a Broadway.com Audience Award for Favorite Featured Actress in a Play. Earlier this year, she recurred on Bravo's dramedy "Girlfriend's Guide to Divorce" and she is currently appearing in the final season of CBS' "The Good Wife."

This May, Hilty released a live album comprising of songs from her recent concert tour, entitled "Megan Hilty Live at the Café Carlyle." She is currently in residency at New York's Café Carlyle, where she previously performed the last two years. This summer, she will appear in Hulu's "Difficult People" and CBS' "BrainDead" and continue to tour abroad, making her Australian debut as part of the Adelaide Cabaret Festival.

In March 2013, Hilty released her debut solo album, "It Happens All The Time," which included fresh interpretations of compositions by contemporary songwriters and producers. Earlier, Hilty starred as Lorelei Lee, the diamond-loving blonde made famous by Carol Channing, in the Encores! production of "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," to which she earned rave reviews. Additionally, her voice was featured as Rosetta in Disney's "Tinker Bell: Secret of the Wings." She has also recorded vocals in Disney's "The Secret Life of Magic Gourd," "Phineas & Ferb," "Glenn Martin DDS," "American Dad," "Tinker Bell and the Pixie Hollow Games," "Robot & Monster" as well as singing as Snow White in the film "Shrek the Third." Hilty can be heard in the animated film "Dorothy of Oz" with Kelsey Grammer, Hugh Dancy and Lea Michele. She can also be heard alongside Placido Domingo on the opera star's duet album.

A native of Seattle, Hilty moved to New York City after graduating from the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University, and quickly made her Broadway debut as Glinda in "Wicked." She went on to perform the role in both the national tour and in Los Angeles.

After receiving high praise for her portrayal of Doralee Rhodes in Broadway's "9 to 5: The Musical," Hilty was honored with nominations for Lead Actress in a Musical at the Drama Desk Awards, Outer Critics Circle Awards, the Drama League Awards and L.A. Stage Alliance Ovation Awards. Hilty has previously performed at Carnegie Hall with the New York Pops, the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center, the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center, the Boston Pops, the Cincinnati Pops, the Houston Symphony, the Phoenix Symphony among many others. She was also featured on TNT's 2012 Christmas in Washington special and continues to perform at prestigious venues nationwide. Megan is a frequent guest on PBS' televised Live from Capital Hill concerts. Her solo concert concerts continue to sell out and receive critical acclaim across the country.

Her television credits include guest-starring roles in "Melissa & Joey," "Bones," "The Closer," "Desperate Housewives," "CSI," "Shark," "Ugly Betty," "Eli Stone" and "The Suite Life of Zach & Cody." Among Hilty's film credits are "The Bitter Feast" the short film "The Happiest Man Alive," opposite Justin Chambers and the upcoming "Untitled Warren Beatty Project."

About BRAINDEAD:

"BrainDead" is a comic-thriller set in the world of Washington, D.C. politics that follows Laurel, a young, fresh-faced Hill staffer who discovers two things: the government has stopped working, and bugs are eating the brains of congress members and Hill staffers. The daughter of a Democratic political dynasty who left Washington, D.C. to become a documentary filmmaker, Laurel is pulled back into THE FAMILY business when her brother, Luke, the Democratic Whip Senator from Maryland, needs her help running his senate office. On the Hill, Laurel becomes unlikely friends with Gareth, the smart, hardworking Legislative Director to a top Republican, Senator Red Wheatus. Her other allies include Gustav, an eccentric genius who is the first in D.C. to recognize that something sinister is attacking the Capitol, and Rochelle, a medical student who teams up with Laurel and Gustav to protect and defend the citizens of D.C. from an untimely fate. As the tiny bugs continue to multiply, Laurel and her allies must work quickly to identify the otherworldly creatures, stop their infiltration and ultimately save the world.

Photo by Nathan Johnson



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