Andie MacDowell, Daniel Sunjata, Diahann Carroll, Annabeth Gish and Ashley Williams to Star in First Adaptations of Patricia Cornwell Novels 'At Risk' and 'The Front'

Andie MacDowell, Daniel Sunjata, Diahann Carroll, Annabeth Gish and Ashley Williams to Star in First Adaptations of Patricia Cornwell Novels 'At Risk' and 'The Front'

Two Movies Adapted From America's #1 Best-Selling Crime Writer Set to Premiere on Lifetime in 2010

LOS ANGELES, July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The trademark suspense and rich characters of #1 best-selling crime writer Patricia Cornwell's books come chillingly to life in At Risk and The Front, two Lifetime Original Movies starring Andie MacDowell (sex, lies and videotape), Daniel Sunjata (TV's Rescue Me), Diahann Carroll (TV's Grey's Anatomy), Annabeth Gish (TV's Brotherhood, Mystic Pizza) and Ashley Williams (TV's Good Morning, Miami, TV's Saving Grace). The films mark the first time ever that Cornwell's books have been adapted for the screen. Each movie follows Massachusetts state investigator Win Garano (Sunjata) and his ambitious supervisor, district attorney Monique Lamont (MacDowell), as they investigate cases. Carroll stars as Garano's grandmother, Nana; Gish plays Garano's co-worker, Sykes; and Williams is Stump, a detective who becomes Garano's love interest.

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ABOUT AT RISK

At Risk introduces audiences to the high-powered and glamorous District Attorney Monique Lamont (MacDowell), who seeks to further her political aspirations by solving a decades-old murder. Not convinced of the purity of his boss' motives, Monique's colleague, Win Garano (Sunjata), grudgingly takes on the assignment. But, the deeper he delves into this cold case, the more twisted it becomes and more apparent that there is much more at stake. At Risk was a number one New York Times best-seller and is now a best-seller in the U.K.

ABOUT THE FRONT

Based on the second book of Patricia Cornwell's best-selling Win Garano series, The Front brings back high-powered and sexy Boston District Attorney Monique Lamont and her favorite ace detective, Win Garano, in a fast-paced mystery. Determined to generate much-needed publicity as her career in politics begins to lose its shine, Monique orders Win to re-open an investigation into an unsolved homicide that took place in one of Boston's small outlying communities served by "The Front," a coalition of small, local police departments that have banded together to fight crime.

ABOUT ANDIE MACDOWELL

Andie MacDowell has starred in numerous feature films including the much lauded Steven Soderbergh indie, sex, lies and videotape, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bad Girls, Groundhog Day, Beauty Shop, Green Card (for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination) Multiplicity, Michael, Unstrung Heroes, Short Cuts, The Player, The End of Violence and St. Elmo's Fire. She was also the voice of "Etta the Hen" in Paramount's animated film Barnyard. MacDowell recently completed filming As Good as Dead, The 5th Quarter and The Six Wives of Henry Lefay. Her television credits include the CBS telepic Riding the Bus with My Sister and the Emmy-nominated film Dinner with Friends for HBO.

ABOUT DANIEL SUNJATA

Daniel Sunjata is best known for his portrayal of firefighter "Franco Rivera" on the critically-acclaimed FX series Rescue Me. Last year, he portrayed "Reggie Jackson" in the ESPN series The Bronx is Burning. His other television credits include appearances on Love Monkey, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU and Sex and the City. He also co-starred in the WB's series D.C. and the Showtime film The Feast of All Saints. Sunjata's feature film credits include Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, The Devil Wears Prada, Woody Allen's Melinda and Melinda, Bad Company, Noel and Brother to Brother. Also an accomplished stage actor, he received a Tony Award nomination for his work in Richard Greenberg's Take Me Out.

ABOUT DIAHANN CARROLL

Diahann Carroll is an award-winning actress, a successful entrepreneur and a devoted humanitarian. A winner of both a Golden Globe (Julia) and a Tony Award (No Strings) and with nominations for the Oscar, Emmy and Grammy, she is the consummate entertainer. On television, she starred in her own series, Julia, A Different World and Dynasty. Her other television credits include Grey's Anatomy, Soul Food and Lifetime's Strong Medicine. Carroll's film credits are numerous and include Claudine, Carmen Jones, Paris Blues, Porgy & Bess, Hurry Sundown, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and Eve's Bayou.

ABOUT ANNABETH GISH

Annabeth Gish is a versatile actress who most recently starred in the Showtime series Brotherhood. Her additional television credits include The X-Files and The West Wing, as well as the telefilms Murder on Her Mind, Candles on Bay Street, Stephen King's Desperation, Detective, Life on Liberty Street, A Death in the Family, The Way She Moves, Sealed with a Kiss, Different and True Women, opposite Angelina Jolie. Her feature film credits include Mystic Pizza, Wyatt Earp, Nixon, Beautiful Girls, Double Jeopardy and The Celestine Prophecy.

ABOUT ASHLEY WILLIAMS

Ashley Williams charmed audiences as good natured hairstylist Dylan on the NBC comedy Good Morning, Miami. Since then, she has had recurring roles on series such as Saving Grace, Huff, How I Met Your Mother, E-Ring and the Lifetime series Side Order of Life. She also starred in the movie Snow for ABC Family, followed by its sequel, Snow 2: Brain Freeze, as well as the Lifetime Original Movie Nora Roberts' Montana Sky. Williams began her career on the daytime serial As the World Turns.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

At Risk and The Front are produced by Once Upon a Time Films in association with Head First Productions for Lifetime Television. Stanley M. Brooks (Lifetime's Prayers for Bobby, Lifetime Movie Network's Capture of the Green River Killer), Jim Head (Lifetime's A Christmas Wedding, Lifetime Movie Network's Everything She Ever Wanted) and Patricia Cornwell serve as Executive Producers.

Damian Ganczewski (Lifetime's Prayers for Bobby, Lifetime Movie Network's Capture of the Green River Killer) will produce. Tom McLoughlin (Lifetime's Fab Five: The Texas Cheerleader Scandal, Lifetime's The Staircase Murders) directs from scripts written by John Pielmeier (Lifetime's The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Lifetime Movie Network's Capture of the Green River Killer) and based on the books At Risk and The Front by Patricia Cornwell.

Most recently, Lifetime received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including nods for Coco Chanel, starring Shirley MacLaine, and Prayers for Bobby, with Sigourney Weaver, for "Outstanding Made for Television Movie." MacLaine and Weaver were also nominated for their respective films in the category of "Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie." The nominations mark the first time in Lifetime history that the Network has received two nominations in both categories the same year. The Network's miniseries Maneater also received an Emmy nomination for "Outstanding Makeup for a Miniseries or a Movie/Non-Prosthetic."

ABOUT LIFETIME TELEVISION

Lifetime is a diverse, multi-media company, committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming that celebrates, entertains and supports women. Through its award-winning public affairs initiatives, the Company also advocates a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. Lifetime Television, Lifetime Movie Network, Lifetime Real Women and Lifetime Digital (which includes myLifetime.com, Lifetime Games, Roiworld.com, DressUpChallenge.com and MothersClick.com) are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

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Source: Lifetime

CONTACT: Tracy Speed of Lifetime, +1-310-556-7541,
tspeed@lifetimetv.com

Web Site: http://www.mylifetime.com/

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