It’s been awhile since we heard about Kyle Killen’s Influence pilot, which seems to be alive and well over at ABC. Steve Zahn was already cast as the lead in the pilot and now he has been joined by Christian Slater, who will also star in the pilot.
When Influence was first announced last fall, the put-pilot project was described as a weird drama that would follow a bipolar man and his con-man brother who team up to handle problems for a variety of clients. The two men are described as having a special set of skills, and will use “manipulation” and “motivation” to achieve ends. It all sounds a little strange, but fans shouldn’t expect anything less from Killen, who has created both Lone Star and Awake.
In the series, Zahn has already signed on as the bipolar brother, leaving Slater to take on the role of the slick ex-con, Ross. According to Deadline, Ross is only recently out of prison and has come up with a business scheme that he feels will make millions. He’s also described as a ladies man, which may or may not affect his ability to make the scheme fully applicable. He served a prison sentence for fraud, and overall he sounds like a fraud, but a potentially likeable one.
Slater most recently appeared on the small screen in Breaking In. That program just ended last summer and for a while it seemed like the actor would probably be sitting out this pilot season. So far, the castings seem right for this pilot, but we’ll have to wait and see whether or not Influence moves forward at ABC.
