The new fall shows have plenty of big-name stars, including Cedric the Entertainer (“The Neighborhood”) and Jim Carrey (“Kidding”).
But what’s really noticeable on the fall lineup are the number of actors starring in series for the first time after lots of minor parts — or after working in overseas projects.
Here are some of the performers we’re keeping an eye on.
Elizabeth Lail, “You” (Sept. 9, Lifetime)
In this stalker drama for millennials, Guinnevere Beck (Elizabeth Lail) is an aspiring writer who meets handsome Joe (Penn Badgley) in a bookstore. They hit it off and, it seems, they’re ready for a CW-style romance. But this is Lifetime TV, where women are historically placed in jeopardy. What Beck doesn’t know is that Joe has been stalking her online, creating a personality that she will find appealing. Lail projects a believable innocence certain to have audiences enthralled — especially as Joe convinces her that she can’t live without him.
J.D. Pardo, “Mayans, MC” (Sept 4, FX)
It takes guts to follow the skid marks left on the streets of California by “Sons of Anarchy” to “Mayans MC,” but J. D. Pardo confidently hopped on a soft-tail customized Harley and gripped those 22-inch ape-hangers (handlebars) to play lead character Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes, the guy who had the best chance of anyone to get out of his hometown of Santa Padre — until he blew it and went to prison. How he negotiates the dangerous world of the Mayans MC and satisfies the men who let him out of jail forms the bloody backbone of this new melodrama about a border-town motorcycle club.
Stephanie Szostak, “A Million Little Things” (Sept. 26, ABC)
An ensemble cast of familiar faces (Ron Livingston, Grace Park, David Giuntoli) drives this drama about a group of friends who receive an unexpected reality check when one of their own commits suicide. Viewers will soon zone in on French-American actress Stephanie Szostak, who plays scarlet widow Delilah Dixon as the most enigmatic — and tantalizing — of them all. With a face made for keeping secrets, she is equal parts vulnerability and desire. How Delilah decides to handle her inheritance makes her the show’s most intriguing character.
Daniel Ezra, “All American” (Oct. 10, The CW)
This British actor (“Prime Suspect 1973”) is making his American series debut in this uplifting drama about Spencer James, a Los Angeles (South Crenshaw High) all-star wide receiver who transfers to a school in Beverly Hills. Based on the real-life experience of former NFL player Spencer Paysinger, Ezra is the classic outsider straddling two worlds with style, physical grace and a handy sense of humor.
Brandon Micheal Hall, “God Friended Me” (Sept. 30, CBS)
Yeah, we know — Hall starred in ABC’s short-lived sitcom “The Mayor” last season so he’s not really a rookie. We’re giving him an “honorable mention,” since his charisma was so evident that CBS wasted no time signing him up for “God Friended Me,” the “Touched By An Angel” for the social-media generation. As atheistic podcaster Miles Finer, Hall brings the same warmth and camera presence to the role of man who goes against his better judgment to believe in … well, just who is that contacting him on Facebook?
