‘Reasonable Doubt’ Adds Essence Atkins, Melissa Ponzio & Vaughn W. Hebron To Season 2 Cast
EXCLUSIVE: Essence Atkins (First Wives Club), Melissa Ponzio (Chicago Fire) and Vaughn W. Hebron (The Oval) have signed on to recurring roles in Season 2 of Onyx Collective’s Reasonable Doubt.
From executive producers Raamla Mohamed, Kerry Washington and Larry Wilmore, Reasonable Doubt centers on Los Angeles-based high-powered criminal defense attorney Jacqueline “Jax” Stewart (Emayatzy Corinealdi) as she deals with past traumas, a failing marriage, motherhood and a murder case, all while trying to keep her life together.
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In Season 2: After trying to heal from her wounds from last season’s arduous trial and deadly affair, Jax Stewart (Emayatzy Corinealdi) is attempting to get her life back on track. That is until one of her closest friends reveals that she has killed her husband. Her friend is claiming self-defense, but an uncompromising prosecutor thinks otherwise. Needing all the help she can get, Jax brings in an ambitious defense attorney to lead the case, but things get tense very quickly. Can Jax defend her friend, save her marriage and protect her energy while being catapulted into the biggest case of her career? Or will she lose it all?
Atkins will play Dr. Brandy Michaels. She is an expert on domestic violence which is abundantly clear when she is on the stand, pointedly explaining to the court how many victims stay in abusive relationships.
Ponzio will portray Lucy Wargo, a new District Attorney who’s just come to Los Angeles from Las Vegas. By-the-book, officious, Lucy is extremely ambitious and driven, but hides those qualities behind an icy determination to do the right thing.
Hebron will play Adrian Hunter. An NFL player and the late JT’s mentee, he assists Jax in going through his mentor’s memorabilia and affixing price tags to items.
Atkins, Ponzio and Hebron join previously announced guest star Kandi Burruss. She recurs as Eboni Phillips, the mother of JT’s child Natasha, who was wild in a former life but has since cleaned herself up.
As previously announced, Morris Chestnut joins the cast this season in the role of Corey Cash. The cast also includes McKinley Freeman as “Lewis Stewart,” Tim Jo as “Daniel,” Angela Grovey as “Krystal,” Thaddeus J. Mixson as “Spenser” and Aderinsola Olabode as “Naima.”
Reasonable Doubt is created, written and executive produced by Raamla Mohamed. Kerry Washington executive-produces alongside Pilar Savone for Simpson Street, Larry Wilmore via Wilmore Films, and Anton Cropper. Shawn Holley, Jon Leshay, Tamara Gregory, Lena Cordina, TASH Gray and Resheida Brady serve as co-executive producers. The series hails from Onyx Collective and is produced by ABC Signature, a part of Disney Television Studios.
Atkins was most recently seen in recurring roles on First Wives Club, The Company You Keep and in a praised guest-starring role as Renee Holcomb on the final season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. She’s repped by Buchwald and Kathy McComb Management.
Ponzio starred in Teen Wolf for six seasons and recently reprised her role as Melissa McCall Paramount+’s Teen Wolf: The Movie revival. She recurs in the second season of the Apple TV+ comedy The Big Door Prize. Other recent credits include action-comedy series Die Hart opposite Kevin Hart and the Netflix original feature film Thunder Force. Ponzio is represented by Kass Management.
Hebron was most recently a series regular on the Paramount+ reboot of The Game for two seasons. He also was also a series lead on the Tyler Perry White House drama The Oval for three seasons on BET. On the film side, Hebron was a supporting lead in Lionsgate’s The Devil You Know. He’s repped by Stewart Talent, CGEM Talent, and attorney Mark S. Temple.
Season two of Reasonable Doubt premieres Thursday, August 22 on Hulu, with two episodes. New episodes stream Thursdays.
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