UPN Taps Talent For Pilots

With pilot season now well underway, Enterprise network UPN has been busy casting both new and familiar faces for its potential 2003-2004 series line-up.

Marina Black has been cast in Weapon X as the love interest of Christopher Gorham's character, the Futon Critic reported. Gorham plays a geeky National Security Agency technician who becomes a superhero after he is mistakenly injected with computer chips. Black is probably best known for her appearances as Parker McKenna on HBO's Six Feet Under.

Also joining the drama series is Matt Czuchry, whose credits include Eight Legged Freaks and episodes of 7th Heaven and The Practice. Weapon X comes from the pen of Silvio Horta, creator of The Chronicle.

While Black and Czuchry will be seen in supporting parts in Weapon X, UPN recently cast the lead roles for another drama pilot, The Edge. Nicholas Gonzalez and Paul Wasilewski will play newly-minted FBI agents who police the Mexican border with a DEA Agent.

Gonzalez has been seen in Resurrection Blvd. and Undressed, while Wasilewski's television credits include the short-lived Wolf Lake and a recurring role on American Dreams. Matthew Carnahan (Fastlane) created the series.

Aaron Spelling's remake of the 1980s series, Hotel, also gained two cast members in the past week. Michael Jai White (Spawn, Universal Soldier: The Return), will play the titular hotel's head of security, while Christina Vidal has been cast as twenty-something Gisel, a hotel staff member on parole. Vidal's credits include roles on Providence, Sabrina The Teenage Witch and the lead part in Taina.

On the half-hour comedy front, Duane Martin has nabbed the lead role in All of Us, a pilot from film star Will Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, based on their home life. Martin has appeared in several UPN comedy staples, including Girlfriends, One on One and Abby.

UPN has so far greenlit a total of 12 pilots for next season, but while television networks commission numerous pilots each year, only a handful of the projects ever make it to series. For the 2003-2004 season, UPN will likely be looking for a drama series to replace the departing Buffy The Vampire Slayer on Tuesday nights, while Enterprise's Wednesday-night lead-out spot could be open if the network decides not to renew The Twilight Zone for a second season.

The full run-down of the latest casting news can be found in the Futon Critic's Newswire section.

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