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Seven months after the death of actress Naya Rivera, Starz announced the name of the interpreter who will replace her in the series Increase.
Grammy Award-nominated actress and singer Christina Milian (The Oath, Soundtrack) has joined the cast to give life to Colette, played in the first two seasons by Rivera.
“I am so excited to join the ‘Step Up’ family,” said Milian. “I know I have high expectations to meet. Naya was amazing. I hope to honor Naya, her family, friends, and fans with a great performance. “, he claimed.
“Naya’s death was a terrible loss to our world that, frankly, we will never stop crying,” added creator and executive producer Holly Sorensen.
“It was almost impossible to consider that there could be someone so graceful and caring who could help us honor our loss, while at the same time bringing a deep pool of talent to our program, in so many areas. Christina is an exceptional person and a dazzling artist and we are so happy that she has joined our family, ”he added.
Inspired by the film franchise of Lionsgate Step Up, which grossed more than $ 600 million at the worldwide box office, the original series centers on Sage Odom (Ne-Yo) as the legendary founder of Atlanta’s famed High Water School of Performing Arts.
Colette is the Queen of High Water and Sage Odom’s partner in art, business, and love. Colette built and nurtured Sage’s Visionary Academy from the ground up.
Pushing her way to the top with courage and resourcefulness, Collette landed a new role as Sage Odom’s manager on his tour, all while hiding a dark secret.
As this secret collapses in Sage, High Water, and the tour, Collette is tempted by the opportunity to step out of her role as the woman behind the man, to become the powerful woman in front of the man.
Besides Milian, Ne Yo returns in his co-starring role of Sage Odom, along with the series regular Faizon Love (“Uncle Al”), Jade Chynoweth (“Odalie”), Carlito Olivero (“Davis”), Terrence Green (“Rigo”), Eric Graise (“King”) and Kendra Oyesanya (“Poppy”).
“No one could replace Naya, let’s make that clear, but her spirit lives on in our memories and in every part of our program,” Ne-Yo said.
“Christina has high expectations to meet and she knows it, which speaks to her commitment and respect as a person and as an artist.. I am more than confident in her ability to bring energy and light to this character that Naya fans and the rest of the world will love. We welcome Christina with open arms and have joined her with love and support. I’m excited and I can’t wait for the world to see this! ”He said.
The series, which initially launched in Youtube, began filming in Atlanta this month. Along with Sorenson, Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot, who served as producers on the original Step Up films, and will executive produce this latest chapter in the franchise through Offspring Entertainment.
“Step Up has been an indelible part of the life of my partner and me, Jennifer Gibgot for 16 years and we never thought we would feel a loss like the one we felt with the passing of Naya”, Shankman said.
“But speaking as her longtime friend, colleague and fan, nothing makes us happier than being able to celebrate the continuation of this story with the extraordinary Christina Milian and the brilliant Starz team pushing boundaries. We promise not to disappoint them, ”he said.
Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan, who starred in the original movie Increase, They will also executive produce through Tatum’s production company, Free Association. Erik Feig, who served as producer on all of the films and oversaw the franchise while an executive at Lionsgate, is an executive producer through PICTURESTART. Bill Brown is also an executive producer.
The series is inspired by the Lionsgate franchise that spans five films: Step Up, Step Up 2: The Streets, Step Up: 3D, Step Up: Revolution and Step Up: All In. The film series also inspired the live music and dance performance “Step Up Dubai, All In!” at MOTIONGATE Dubai theme park.
The first two successful cycles, which gained a passionate and devoted following on the YouTube platform, will be available exclusively on the STARZ app and On Demand prior to the launch of the new season.
The new “Step Up” series will air on STARZ in the United States and Canada and on its international broadcast platform Starzplay in Europe, Latin America and Japan. Kathryn Tyus-Adair, Senior Vice President of Original Programming, is the executive overseeing “Step Up” on behalf of Starz.
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