Melanie Lynskey has been cast in one of the main roles of the Showtime ensemble drama pilot “Yellowjackets,” Variety has learned exclusively.
The project tells the story of a team of talented high school girls soccer players who survive a plane crash deep in the Ontario wilderness. The series chronicles their descent from a complicated but thriving team to warring, cannibalistic clans, while also tracking the lives they’ve attempted to piece back together nearly 25 years later.
Lynskey will play Shauna Sheridan, one a handful of survivors of the plane crash. 25 years later, Shauna is on a mission to reclaim her agency — her life — while doing everything in her power to keep her darkest secrets safe.
Lynskey is the first person cast in the pilot, which is set to go into production in Los Angeles later this year. She recently appeared in the Hulu series “Castle Rock” and the Australian series “Sunshine Kings.” Lynskey is also known for her role on the popular CBS sitcom “Two and a Half Men.” On the film side, she has appeared in projects like “The Informant,” “Shattered Glass,” “Away We Go,” “Up in the Air,” “But I’m a Cheerleader,” and “Flags of Our Fathers.”
She is repped by Gersh.
The series was created by Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson, who will also executive produce and serve as showrunners. Karyn Kusama will executive produce and direct the pilot. Drew Comins of Creative Engine will also executive produce. The pilot will be a co-production between Showtime and eOne.