The Body: Quinn Shephard Announces Cast for Netflix Teen Drama Series

Netflix is now teasing one of the most intriguing teen-drama projects in recent memory with “The Body.” This forthcoming miniseries (eight episodes are planned thus far) promises to be playful, gritty, sexy, horrifying, and suffused with Catholic-based drama. As described by its showrunner, this forthcoming miniseries (eight episodes are planned thus far) will be a rather dazzling mélange of themes and tones. While no release date has yet been announced, the Netflix-owned website Tudum has released a detailed cast list.

A Distinguished Creator

The creator and showrunner of “The Body” (and the director of its premiere episode) will be Quinn Shephard. Shephard began her career as a child actress, having her first film role (in the 2001 movie “Harrison’s Flowers”) at the age of five. She has also appeared in the TV show “Hostages” and the films “Windsor” and “Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl.” Her directorial debut was the 2017 teen drama “Blame,” and she was the developer of last year’s Emmy-nominated true-crime Hulu miniseries “Under the Bridge.”

A Strange, Deeply Personal Project

But of all the films and shows that she’s taken part in behind and in front of the camera, “The Body” is, she has told Tudum, the “most personal.” The story of the upcoming drama series will concern a group of disobedient Catholic schoolgirls whose dance-team initiation ritual has disastrous consequences for their entire community.

Shephard has explained to Tudum that “The Body” was inspired in part by how she has “always been interested in the idea of girlhood as a religious experience. This story is definitely my way of putting a playful spin on all the nightmares of my own teenagedom. Tonally, I would describe the show as gritty camp. It’s a raunchy teen psychodrama with a dash of Catholic horror.” She also called it “a love letter to all the ’90s and Y2K teen movies and erotic thrillers” that she grew up watching, and cited works as diverse as “Carrie,” “Heavenly Creatures,” “Jennifer’s Body,” “The Crucible,” and “Mean Girls” as creative inspirations.

While it’s unknown precisely when “The Body” will come out, it should contain all the dark chills needed to make it a great October watch. “I love a spooky sense of mounting dread,” Shephard proclaimed. “I hope people eat popcorn while they watch this, even when The Body hits hard. Maybe light some candles and throw a slumber party.”

A Comprehensive Cast List

Tudum has also revealed the names of many of the actors (and their corresponding characters) who will star in “The Body,” both as regulars and in recurring roles. Among the former are Kristina Bogic (“Howl”) as Anya Butler, Nnamdi Asomugha (“The Knife”) as Father Franklin, Shirley Chen (“Slanted“) as Maddie Delaney, and Sofia Wylie (“The Map That Leads to You”) as Grace Franklin. The latter include Orlando Norman, also of “The Map That Leads to You,” as Steven Maxwell, as well as the Pierce twins – identical sisters Kyra and Phallon – as Bailey and Brit Bradley (presumably the Bradley twins).

A Much-Valued EP Team

“The Body” will be executive-produced in part by Felix Culpa Productions, which is run by Riley Keough, Gina Gammell, and Sacha Ben Harroche. Keough is an actress who has appeared in such films as “Magic Mike” and “Mad Max: Fury Road,” as well as such TV shows as “The Terminal List” and Shephard’s own “Under the Bridge,” the latter of which was also co-executive-produced by her Felix Culpa.

Shephard obviously couldn’t be happier to be working once more with the people of this production company. “It’s our second show together, which speaks to how much I adore this team,” she remarked, “The Felix Culpa team is as real as they get. Riley and Gina are visionaries and also hilarious and have killer taste, along with their whole team. I consider Gina my true creative partner on this. She’s in the trenches with me daily, and she never stops pushing this show to be the best (and wildest) version of itself.”

In addition to Felix Culpa, “The Body” will also be executive-produced by North Road, represented by Peter Chernin, Amy Israel, and Josh Stern.