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John Ortiz Joins ABC Drama Pilot ‘Promised Land’

John Ortiz has been cast in a leading role of the ABC drama pilot “Promised Land,” Variety has learned.

The show is described as an epic, generation-spanning drama about two Latinx families vying for wealth and power in California’s Sonoma Valley. Ortiz joins previously announced cast members Christina Ochoa and Mariel Molino.

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Ortiz will star as Joe Sandoval, the patriarch of the Sandoval family, a wealthy vineyard-owning family in the Sonoma Valley. Joe took a small vineyard owned by a former rival and turned it into a wine and beverage empire, alienating many, including members of his own family, along the way. More than just a savvy corporate fighter, Joe can do every job there is to do on a vineyard, but finds himself at a crossroads when an enemy from his past resurfaces.

Ortiz had his directorial debut at the Atlantic Theater with the play “Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven.” Onscreen, he was most recently seen in the film “The Fallout.” His other feature credits include “Ad Astra,” “Bumblebee,” “The Cloverfield Paradox,” and “Fast & Furious 6.” On the TV side, he previously appeared in shows like “Messiah,” “Little America,” and “Togetherness.”

He is repped by Gersh, Principal Entertainment LA, and Schreck Rose Dapello.

Matt Lopez is set to write and executive produce “Promised Land,” with Adam Kolbrenner also executive producing. ABC Signature will serve as the studio. Lopez has developed a number of projects with ABC and other broadcasters in the past. He most recently created the CTV drama “Gone.” As a feature writer, his credits include “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” “Race to Witch Mountain,” and “Bedtime Stories.”

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