CBS Fast-Tracking the Roselyn Sanchez-Produced Drama “HSI: Puerto Rico”

Roselyn Sanchez’s latest television project is on the fast track…

CBS is accelerating development of HSI: Puerto Rico, a drama from the 48-year-old Puerto Rican actress, singer & producer and her actor-husband Eric Winter’s Two for the Road Entertainment and Aaron Kaplan’s Kapital Entertainment, where Two for the Road is under a deal.

Roselyn Sanchez

CBS has set up a writers room led by the project’s writer/executive producer Lisa Morales (Queen Sugar), which will be generating five scripts and a season one bible for a potential scripts-to-series order.

Like its other broadcast counterpart, CBS has been exploring other development paths and alternatives to the traditional development model, a process that was accelerated by the pandemic.

In HSI: Puerto Rico, eyed as a prospective CBS crime drama franchise, a passionate Homeland Security agent reluctantly returns home to Puerto Rico where she works with her talented but jaded training officer as part of an elite HSI team working tirelessly as the first line of defense against all manner of threats to the United States.

Sanchez and Winter executive produce via Two for the Road; Kaplan and Brian Morewitz executive produce for Kapital, which serves as the studio. Jessie Abbott is overseeing for Kapital.

Sanchez and Winter are series regulars on ongoing shows, ABC’s The Rookie and Fox’s Fantasy Islandrespectively.

Morales also served as showrunner of the CW’s Two Sentence Horror Stories anthology horror series.

Carmen Marrón to Direct Episode of Ava DuVernay’s Drama “Queen Sugar”

It’s a sweet opportunity for Carmen Marrón

The Mexican-American writer/director will helm an episode of Ava DuVernay’s drama Queen Sugar for Season 6.

Carmen Marrón

Marrón joins a list of series helmers that includes, Lisa France, Bertha Bay-Sa Pan, Cierra Glaude, Keisha Rae Witherspoon, Marie Jamora, Shari L. Carpenter, Shaz Bennett and Stephanie Turner.

Queen Sugar, currently in production in New Orleans, is set to premiere later in the fall.

The addition of the nine directors continues DuVernay’s commitment to hiring an entirely woman-led directing team for the show. The latest addition brings the series’ total women director count to 42 filmmakers, 39 of whom are first-time television directors.

Set in rural Louisiana and the fictional community of St. Josephine, Queen Sugar focuses on the trio of Bordelon siblings, played by Dawn-Lyen Gardner, Rutina Wesley and Kofi Siriboe, and their extended family.

Also joining as a recurring character is Marquis Rodriguez.

He will play Isaiah, a college student wise beyond his years who befriends Micah West.

Queen Sugar, created by DuVernay, airs Tuesday nights on OWN.

Amanda Tavarez to Star in OWN’s Original Holiday Movie “First Christmas”

Amanda Tavarez is ready for her OWN Christmas

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network has expanded its holiday season programming with the new original holiday movie First Christmas, starring the Dominican American actress.

Amanda Tavarez

First Christmas, which also stars Idara Victor and Tonea Stewart, will premiere on Tuesday, December 22. The movie joins the previously announced Our OWN Christmas gospel music special hosted by Meagan Good and DeVon Franklin, which airs on Tuesday, December 1 at 9:00 pm ET/PT.

Given up for adoption and placed in foster care at a young age, writer Halle Downing receives the blessing of a lifetime when she’s invited to spend Christmas in New Orleans with the biological family she never knew she had – The Moores. Halle’s grandmother “Memaw” welcomes the young woman with open arms, completely overwhelming Halle with emotion at the significance of finally finding her family. Extremely excited to meet her twin siblings Tiffany (Samantha Smith) and Glenn (Mason Beauchamp) along with younger brother Drew (Peyton Jackson) for the first time, Halle soon faces the hard reality that finding her place in this close-knit family is going to take longer than she thought, something that becomes particularly evident when she witnesses Tiffany’s apprehension about introducing her new girlfriend Paris (Tavarez) to the family for the first time. However, as Christmas approaches, Halle begins to gain perspective on the Moore family dynamic and ultimately comes to embrace and celebrate her first family holiday with a special gift that tells her she is right where she is supposed to be. 

First Christmas is produced for OWN by MarVista in association with Harpo Films.

Tavarez’s previous credits include Queen Sugar, Dynasty, Cake: The Series and The Resident.