According to Deadline, Jason Ritter has been cast as the lead in Netflix's straight-to-series hourlong sci-fi family drama Raising Dion, based on commercial and music video director Dennis Liu's short film about an African-American single mother who discovers her young son has multiple, constantly changing abilities. The project comes from Liu, Creed star Michael B. Jordan, who will have a supporting role, veteran showrunner Carol Barbee (UnReal, Judging Amy), writer-producer Michael Green (American Gods, Logan) and Charles D. King's MACRO (Fences).
Raising Dion, a Netflix production, follows the story of a woman named Nicole Reese, who raises her son Dion after the death of her husband Mark (Jordan). The normal dramas of raising a son as a single mom are amplified when Dion starts to manifest several magical, superhero-like abilities. Nicole must now keep her son's gifts secret with the help of Mark's best friend Pat, and protect Dion from antagonists out to exploit him while figuring out the origin of his abilities.
Ritter will play Pat, a comic-book-reading scientist who worked with Mark (Jordan), his best friend. With Mark gone, Pat makes a big effort to be there for Nicole and Dion, and loves them like family. Not only is Pat smart, cute, and successful - he also has a special bond with Dion.
Ritter has appeared in the MTV show Punk'd. Ritter also starred as Sean Walker in the season-long NBC drama series The Event, which premiered on September 20, 2010. Ritter will be seen alongside Kate French in the upcoming short film, Atlantis, a romance film centered on two strangers who fall in love during the preparation for the final launch of the NASA space shuttle Atlantis. He had a recurring role on NBC's Parenthood. His performance on the show earned him an Emmy Award nomination in 2012. It was confirmed in early March 2013 that he would play Gavin opposite Alexis Bledel's Stacey in Us & Them, FOX's sitcom pilot based on the British television show Gavin & Stacey.
Ritter has also been featured in the American period sitcom, ANOTHER PERIOD as Lord Frederick Bellacourt (2015-18). His character is the illiterate twin brother of Beatrice, with whom he is involved in an incestuous relationship. In 2018, Ritter had a supporting role in The Tale, an autobiographical feature film written and directed by Jennifer Fox. The film premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival on January 20, 2018 and later on HBO on May 26th, 2018.
Photo Credit: Walter McBride
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