Tessa Thompson Launches Production Company ‘Viva Maude’

Tessa Thompson is expanding her Hollywood reach…

The 37-year-old part-Panamanian and part-Mexican American actress is moving into the production arena with a new production company, a first-look deal at HBO and HBO Max and executive-producing two big book adaptations – Who Fears Death and The Secret Lives of Church Ladies.

Tessa Thompson,

Thompson, who stars on HBO’s Westworld, has launched Viva Maude with a two-year deal at the WarnerMedia-owned cable network and streaming service.

“I’m beyond thrilled to officially launch my production company, Viva Maude, which has been a real passion project and labour of love over the last few years,” said Thompson. “I’m elated to begin this partnership and to bring entertaining and impactful television projects to my friends and collaborators at HBO and HBO Max. Together we are committed to developing interesting and inclusive stories with inventive creators and to discover new voices and visionaries.”

Thompson, who stars in and executive produced the Amazon Studios feature film Sylvie’s Love, will exec produce the two projects in development at HBO and HBO Max as part of the deal.

Who Fears Death is an adaptation of Nnedi Okorafor’s eponymous book. In the works at HBO since 2017 with Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin as one of the exec producers, Aïda Mashaka Croal, a writer on Jessica Jones and Luke Cage, has also come board as showrunner, writer and exec producer.

Who Fears Death tells the coming of age tale of Onyesowu in post-apocalyptic North Africa where her story makes her an outcast.  She must go on a journey from self-reproach to love, but to do so she’ll have to overcome untold obstacles—defeating her hated sorcerer father and becoming the instrument of prophetic deliverance for a land of oppressed people, all the while fighting to master the terrifying powers growing inside her.

At HBO Max, Thompson is also exec producing an adaptation of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies. The short story collection, written by Deesha Philyaw, was published in September and was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction. It contains nine stories about Black women, church, and sexuality.

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies explores the raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary reprieve from being good. Different generations of women characters grapple with who they want to be in the world, caught as they are between the church’s double standards and their own needs and passions. With their secret longings, new love, and forbidden affairs, these church ladies are as seductive as they want to be, as vulnerable as they need to be, as unfaithful and unrepentant as they care to be, and as free as they deserve to be.

Thompson will exec produce with author Philyaw, who is also writing the adaptation.

Thompson’s other credits include Thor: Ragnarok, Avengers: Endgame, Annihilation, Sorry to Bother YouSelmaand Dear White People and she co-stars alongside Ruth Negga in Rebecca Hall’s directorial debut feature film Passing as well as Creed III and Thor: Love and Thunder.

She is also a producer on QCode’s fiction podcast The Left Right Game, which Amazon purchased the rights to adapt into a television series, with Thompson exec producing the series.

Tessa Thompson to Star In & Produce the QCode Podcast “The Left Right Game”

Tessa Thompson is getting in the game

The 36-year-old half-Afro-Panamanian and part-Mexican American actress will star in and produce podcast The Left Right Game, the latest fiction pod from QCode.

Tessa Thompson,

The cast will also include W. Earl BrownAml Ameen, Dayo OkeniyiInanna SarkisColleen Camp, Robin BartlettJohn BillingsleyJojo T GibbsBrian Greenberg and Pat Healy.

Thompson plays Alice, an idealistic young journalist who tries to make a name for herself at a new job by following a group of paranormal explorers, obsessed with a seemingly harmless pastime known as the Left/Right Game. The journey takes her into a supernatural otherworld that she and the other members of the expedition cannot handle or survive.

The podcast, which is in post-production, was created by Jack Anderson and is based on his original Internet blog of the same name.

The 10-episode series will premiere in a longer format than QCode’s past projects, with episodes ranging from 40-45 minutes. They will be available on AppleSpotify and other podcast platforms in February 2020.

“With sequels and remakes continuing to be such a big media focus, there is a clear gap in the market for original storytelling. We are excited to be partnering with brilliant filmmakers, actors, and sound teams to create fresh, original stories for your ears,” said former CAA agent Herting, president of QCode.

Thompson’s upcoming projects include the third season of Westworld, the Disney reboot Lady and the Tramp and Rebecca Hall’sdirectorial debut Passing.