Hulu's CASTLE ROCK, the psychological horror series from J.J. Abrams and Stephen King, just added a scary amount of top-tier talent to its Season 2 cast. Moving to Maine for the next chapter of the show are CLOVERFIELD and MASTERS OF SEX alumna Lizzy Caplan, MYSTIC RIVER and THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION actor Tim Robbins, TRIPLE FRONTIER's Garrett Hedlund and EIGHTH GRADE star Elsie Fisher. Also set to join the cast are Yusra Warsama (MY BROTHER THE DEVIL), Barkhad Abdi (BLADE RUNNER 2049) and Matthew Alan (RED TAILS).
When the series makes its return to Hulu, Season 2 will center on a feud between warring clans that comes to a boil when budding psychopath Annie Wilkes (Caplan), Stephen King’s nurse from hell, gets waylaid in Castle Rock.
It goes without saying that many of you will recall Wilkes' character from Rob Reiner's chilling 1990 adaptation of Stephen King's Misery. As originally played by legendary actor Kathy Bates (FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, TITANIC), Wilkes once rescued a famous author from a car crash (played by James Caan) with the intention of nursing him back to health. Unfortunately, Annie's kindness takes a dark turn after she discovers that the writer has killed off her favorite literary character in his upcoming novel.
For CASTLE ROCK Season 2, Caplan's Annie will be a nurse struggling with mental health issues.
As for Robbins, the HIGH FIDELITY actor will play Reginald "Pop" Merrill, the Patriarch of Stephen King’s iconic crime family. During the show's events, Pop is dying of cancer and feels that he must reconcile with his family before passing on.
Meanwhile, Hedlund will play John "Ace" Merrill. As a legendary bully of Castle Rock, Ace is poised to take over his uncle Pop’s businesses, threatening a fragile peace with nearby Jerusalem’s Lot.
Fisher will star as Joy, Annie’s home-schooled teenage daughter who is starting to question her mother's sanity.
Warsam will arrive as Dr. Nadia Omar, the Harvard-trained Somali medical director of a rural hospital in Jerusalem’s Lot. Throughout the ordeals of the nest season, Dr. Omar’s rational and scientific mind will be put to the test.
Next, Abdi will portray Abdi Omarm, the tough, older brother of Nadia. As per the show's description, Abdi leads the charge to build a Somali community center that will deepen the roots of his people in Maine.
Lastly, Alan will star as Chris Merrill, Pop’s nephew and Ace’s brother. During the show's events, Chris struggles to keep peace between the Merrills and the Somali community.
Sam Shaw and Dustin Thomason developed the show for Hulu and will serve as executive producers along with J.J. Abrams, Ben Stephenson, Dustin Thomason, Vince Calandra, Sam Shaw, Stephen King and Liz Glotzer.
Wow! That's a hell of a lineup for the follow-up seasons to one of my favorite shows from 2018. Also, if you haven't seen the first season of CASTLE ROCK yet, you need to get on that, pronto. We'll be sure to let you know more details about the show's return as they become available.