Melissa Benoist Tapped to Play Mrs. Koresh in Paramount Network Miniseries Waco
Carissa Pavlica
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With the Spike Network poised to change its name in the coming months for a rebranding, they have some excellent programming on tap.
They're well on their way attracting some excellent actors to their productions, as well.
Melissa Benoist aka Supergirl has been added to the cast of the six-part event series as Rachel Koresh, wife of David Koresh, the man at the helm of The Branch Davidians and one of the worst standoffs in history.
Waco will reveal untold story exploring the true life details leading up to and chronicling the 51-day siege between the FBI, AFT and David Koresh’s spiritual sect, The Branch Davidians.
At the end of the 51-day standoff, an attempt to forcefully remove the Davidians failed, resulting in a deadly fire leaving 76 dead.
The story will be told from several perspectives of those most intimately involved from both sides of the conflict, including surviving Branch Davidians.
Those perspectives have never been shared on television before.
It's said to be surprising in its stark contrast to the media narrative at the time and what is remembered of Waco almost 25 years later.
The impressive cast includes Michael Shannon starring as lead FBI negotiator, Gary Noesner with the role of the infamous cult leader, David Koresh, to be played by Taylor Kitsch.
A photo of the actual Koresh family, including David and Rachel, can be seen above.
Rachel Koresh was the legal wife of Branch Davidian leader David and considered the matriarch of Mount Carmel.
Julia Garner, who was also added to the cast, plays Michelle Jones, Rachel’s younger sister who also had a child with Koresh.
Nobody ever said it was easy being in a cult.
John Leguizamo, Paul Sparks, Rory Culkin, Andrea Riseborough and Shea Whigham round out the Waco cast.
The production is currently filming in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Waco will be a part of the slate of rebranding programming airing in January 2018.
American Woman and Heathers, which were originally scheduled to air on TV Land, will also be airing in the first quarter of 2018 as a part of the rebranding.
American Woman is the highly anticipated new half-hour series Starring Alicia Silverstone and Mena Suvari, inspired by the real-life upbringing of co-executive producer Kyle Richards.
Based on the 1988 cult classic film of the same name, Heathers is an hour-long pitch-black comedy anthology set in the present day, as heroine Veronica Sawyer deals with a very different but equally vicious group of ‘Heathers.’
Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.
