Syfy and UCP Announce Key Roles for The Magicians

* NOTE: Thurs. 12/03/14 – Added New Casting Info *

SYFY AND UNIVERSAL CABLE PRODUCTIONS ANNOUNCE JASON RALPH AND SOSIE BACON TO STAR IN THE MAGICIANS

Based On Lev Grossman’s International Best Selling Novels, Pilot Started Filming This Week In New Orleans

NEW YORK – December 3, 2014 – Syfy and Universal Cable Productions have cast Jason Ralph (Aquarius) for the lead role of Quentin and Sosie Bacon (The Closer) as Alice, in the television adaptation of Lev Grossman’s beloved #1 New York Times best-selling book series, The Magicians. The series started production in New Orleans this week.

Additional series regular roles include the previously announced Stella Maeve as Julia, Hale Appleman as Eliot and Arjun Gupta as Penny. Acclaimed independent filmmaker Mike Cahill (I, Origins, Another Earth) will direct the pilot.

Ralph will star as Quentin Coldwater, a brilliant, withdrawn yet strangely compelling young man who feels like an outsider among his accomplished peers – including beautiful Julia, upon whom he has had a hopeless crush since childhood. Dangerously depressed and disaffected, Quentin has always been a huge fan of a series of books set in the magical land of Fillory – books that still hold immense fascination for him, even though they are intended for children. When he’s recruited as a new student at the mysterious Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy, he realizes that magic is very real, and that he himself is a potentially gifted practitioner. Versatile actor Ralph began his collegiate studies at the acclaimed theater program at Colin College in Plano, Texas. He is known for his roles in the feature films Brightest Star, I’m Obsessed With You (But You’ve Got to Leave Me Alone) and Those People. He has also appeared on HBO’s Looking and Blue Bloods, and will have a key recurring arc on NBC’s new series Aquarius opposite David Duchovny. He currently serves as the co-artistic and producing director of his theater company, Strangemen & Co, and starred as Boy/Peter in the Off-Broadway run of Peter and the Starcatcher, the Tony-winning prequel to Peter Pan. Ralph is represented by Gersh and Authentic Talent and Literary Management.

Bacon will portray Alice, an intensely shy and delicately lovely young woman. Born of a magical but neglectful family, Alice is an outcast among her fellow students at Brakebills, but nonetheless emerges as the most brilliant magical practitioner in her class. Bacon recently wrapped production on the independent film The Lost Boy, in which she stars opposite Virginia Madsen, as well as supporting role in the film Wishin’ And Hopin’ based on the novel of the same name by acclaimed writer Wally Lamb. Bacon began her acting career at the age of 11 when she appeared in the film Loverboy directed by Kevin Bacon. She also appeared in a major arc on season five of the hit TNT series The Closer, opposite Kyra Sedgwick. Bacon’s additional on camera credits include the thriller Off Seasons directed by Robert Cole. In 2013, Bacon was selected by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association as 2014 Miss Golden Globe. She is repped by The Kohner Agency, Schreck, Rose, Dapello & Adams and Impression Entertainment.

The Magicians, produced by Universal Cable Productions, follows 20-somethings who, while studying magic in New York, discover that the magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real and poses grave danger to humanity. John McNamara (Prime Suspect) and Sera Gamble (Supernatural) will write the script, with Michael London (Milk) as producer. Production on the pilot started December 2 in New Orleans.

Lev Grossman’s “Magicians” trilogy has been an international sensation, published and widely praised in more than twenty countries. The epic conclusion to the series, “The Magician’s Land,” just opened at #1 on the New York Times Hardcover Best Seller’s list.

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SYFY AND UNIVERSAL CABLE PRODUCTIONS ANNOUNCE KEY ROLES FOR THE MAGICIANS

PILOT FOR SERIES BASED ON LEV GROSSMAN’S INTERNATIONAL BEST SELLING NOVELS TO BEGIN FILMING THIS DECEMBER IN NEW ORLEANS

NEW YORK – November 6, 2014 – Syfy and Universal Cable Productions have cast Stella Maeve (Chicago PD), Hale Appleman (Teeth) and Arjun Gupta (Nurse Jackie) in key roles for the upcoming pilot The Magicians, an adaptation of Lev Grossman’s beloved #1 New York Times best-selling book series, which begins production in New Orleans this December. Acclaimed independent film producer Mike Cahill (I Origins, Another Earth) is signed on to direct.

Stella Maeve will play the beautiful and confident Julia, a wealthy and brilliant Ivy-Leaguer who seems destined for success. But Julia’s future plans are forever altered after she is denied admittance to the mysterious Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy. Unaccustomed to failure, Julia finds life meaningless now that the possibilities of a previously unseen magical world have been denied to her. But she may get another chance to pursue a career in magic when she’s recruited by a secret society. Maeve can currently be seen in a recurring role on the NBC series Chicago PD. She most recently starred in the independent features Dark Summer opposite Keir Gilchrist, All Together Now, which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival, and Independent Spirit Award-winner Starlet. Previously, Maeve co-starred with Dakota Fanning and Kristen Stewart in The Runaways. Maeve is repped by Paradigm Agency and Principato-Young Entertainment.

Hale Appleman will portray Eliot, a student at the Brakebills who is an odd combination of a preppy with intrinsic coolness. Effortlessly hip, with his air of self-possession, Eliot is accustomed to commanding any clique, and he’s a natural leader of his fellow magical students. He will prove a sometimes frustrating ally in Quentin’s fortunes — and may soon factor into a series of perilous adventures. Appleman played Tobey Cobb in the 2007 film Teeth. He made his film debut in Chad Lowe’s feature Beautiful Ohio, and portrayed cartoonist Judd Winick in Pedro, Nick Oceano’s 2008 film dramatizing the life of AIDS educator Pedro Zamora. He also recurred on NBC’s Smash. His theater credits include Alex Timbers’ The Last Goodbye, which was at the Old Globe in San Diego, and Streamers on Broadway. He is represented by Innovative Artists and D2 Management.

Arjun Gupta will portray Penny, a young man with an edgy look and attitude. He’s deliberately intimidating to Quentin, his new roommate and fellow magic student at Brakebills. A reluctant telepath, he is bedeviled by voices that hint at pathways to other worlds. Gupta played Sam in the first three seasons of Nurse Jackie opposite Edie Falco, and currently recurs on ABC’s How to Get Away With Murder. Gupta is repped by Gersh and Untitled Entertainment.

The Magicians, produced by Universal Cable Productions, follows 20-somethings who, while studying magic in New York, discover that the magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real and poses grave danger to humanity. John McNamara (Prime Suspect) and Sera Gamble (Supernatural) will write the script, with Michael London (Milk) as producer. Production on the pilot is set to start this December in New Orleans.