THE ALIENIST on TNT is rounding out a stellar cast with the news that Sean Astin has been cast as Theodore Roosevelt, the Police Commissioner for New York City. The series also stars Daniel Brühl as Dr. Laszlo Kreizler; Luke Evans as John Moore; and Dakota Fanning as Sara Howard.
THE ALIENIST, based on the book of the same name by Caleb Carr “is a psychological thriller set in the Gilded Age of New York City in 1896, a city of vast wealth, extreme poverty and technological innovation. When a series of haunting, gruesome murders of boy prostitutes grips the city, newly appointed police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt calls upon criminal psychologist (aka alienist) Dr. Laszlo Kreizler (Brühl) and newspaper illustrator John Moore (Evans) to conduct the investigation in secret. They are aided by a makeshift crew of singular characters, among them the intrepid Sara Howard (Fanning), a young secretary on Roosevelt’s staff who is determined to become the first female police detective in New York City. Using the emerging disciplines of psychology and early forensic investigation techniques, this band of social outsiders tracks down one of New York City’s first serial killers.”