Olivia Holt to star in series Cruel Summer, produced by Jessica Biel

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Olivia Holt, who played the "Dagger" of the Marvel Comics-inspired TV series Cloak & Dagger, has signed on to star in the Freefrom thriller series Cruel Summer, which is being executive produced by Jessica Biel.

Holt will be playing Kate, "the embodiment of teenage perfection whose life is one to be envied until she mysteriously disappears." When the pilot episode was filmed, this role was played by Mika Abdalla. It's not known why Freeform chose to recast.

Cruel Summer (which was formerly known as Last Summer) is an "unconventional thriller" that 

takes place over three summers — 1993-95 — in a small Texas town when a beautiful popular teen, Kate (Holt), is abducted and, seemingly unrelated, a girl, Jeanette (Chiara Aurelia), goes from being a sweet, awkward outlier to the most popular girl in town and, by ’95, the most despised person in America. Each episode is told from the POV of one of the two main girls, which will have the viewers’ loyalties constantly shifting as more information is revealed.

The pilot was written/executive produced by Bert V. Royal and directed/executive produced by Max Winkler. Royal will be executive producing the series alongside Iron Ocean Productions' Biel and Michelle Purple.

Cruel Summer sounds intriguing to me. I look forward to learning more about what's going on in this story.