Entertainment Weekly has revealed that Kate Levering (Drop Dead Diva) has joined the upcoming TV series sequel to Cruel Intentions, taking over the role of Annette Hargrove, played by Reese Witherspoon in the 1999 movie. Levering joins Sarah Michelle Gellar, who is returning as Kathryn Merteuil.
The pilot picks up fifteen years after the movie and follows Kathryn “as she vies for control of Valmont International, as well as the soul of Bash Casey, who is the son of her brother, the late Sebastian Valmont (Ryan Phillippe), and Annette Hargrove.”
In the series, Annette is described as “a genuine, good Christian woman for whom life has not been easy. Annette lives in a small town with her husband, Trevor Casey, and her son, Bash, with whom she has a close and playful relationship. Annette is rocked by Trevor’s sudden and scandalous death, and Bash’s discovery that his biological dad was the billionaire hotel magnate Sebastian Valmont, with whom Annette had a torrid relationship when she was in high school. Annette’s life starts to unravel when Bash heads to San Francisco to meet his birth family, putting Annette face-to-face with her nemesis, Kathryn Merteuil.”
According to reports, the producers did not approach Oscar-winner Witherspoon, opting instead to recast for the TV pilot.
