EMERALD CITY Finds its Wizard of Oz
The Hollywood Reporter has learned that Vincent D’Onofrio will play the Wizard of Oz in Emerald City.
As we reported before, Emerald City is a 10-episode straight-to-series Wizard Of Oz drama, hailing from Universal TV, that appears to be going in a much darker direction than the story viewers are used to. The official logline reads, “In the blink of a tornado’s eye, 20-year-old Dorothy Gale and her K9 police dog are transported to another world, one far removed from our own — a mystical land of competing kingdoms, lethal warriors, dark magic and a bloody battle for supremacy. This is the fabled Land of Oz in a way you’ve never seen before, where wicked witches don’t stay dead for long and a young girl becomes a headstrong warrior who holds the fate of kingdoms in her hands.”
D’Onofrio’s Wizard of Oz is reportedly described as the enigmatic leader of Emerald City, who rules through inspiration, fear and a tenuous accord with the grand witches.
Through a prolonged deal making process, this casting brings D’Onofrio back to NBC after spending a decade attached to the network through Law & Order: Criminal Intent. This casting provides Tarsem Singh, who will helm Emerald City, a chance to reunite with the actor after previously working together on The Cell.