Liu, Somerville Join ABC's 'Mafia'

Zap2It.com | March 1, 2007

Lucy Liu

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Lead roles filled on Darren Star pilot

Lucy Liu and Bonnie Somerville have signed onto ABC's pilot "Cashmere Mafia," completing the quartet of lead roles in the Darren Star project.

The two actresses join Miranda Otto and Frances O'Connor in the show, which is about the friendship between four female executives who have to balance work, family and other obligations.

Somerville is set to play an executive at a big cosmetics firm, the showbiz trade papers report. That role originally went to Otto ("The Lord of the Rings"), but she'll now be playing a different character, the chief operating officer of a hotel chain.

The pilot is a reunion for Star and Somerville, who's worked on two of the "Sex and the City" creator's previous shows, "Grosse Pointe" and "Kitchen Confidential." She also was a regular on the final season of "NYPD Blue" and has had recurring parts on "The O.C." and "Friends."

For Liu, the pilot will be her first regular TV work since her time on "Ally McBeal" several years ago. The "Charlie's Angels" and "Lucky Number Slevin" star recently guest-starred on ABC's "Ugly Betty."

Kevin Wade ("Maid in Manhattan") wrote the "Cashmere Mafia" pilot and will executive produce with Star and Gail Katz; Susie Fitzgerald is a co-exec producer. Peyton Reed ("The Break-Up," "Bring It On") is directing the pilot.