Yvonne Strahovski Reteams With Chuck Co-Creator For Astronaut Wives Club
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I’d guess most of us had dreams of growing up to become an astronaut at some point during our childhoods. How could you not? They were pushing the boundaries of human endeavor and going boldly, just like in Star Trek always said. But one thing my childhood astronaut fantasies never really considered was, what it must have been like for the friends and family those astronauts left back here on Earth, especially during the daring early days of the Mercury and Apollo missions? How does it feel to see the person you love most leaving footprints on the surface of the moon? Those are the sorts of questions ABC’s Astronaut Wives Club is set to explore, and now the cast has gained a familiar face in the form of Chuck actress Yvonne Strahovski.
Hitfix reports that Strahovski will be joining Astronaut Wives Club in the role of Rene Carpenter, wife of astronaut Scott Carpenter. He was one of the original “Mercury Seven,” and became the second American (after John Glenn) to orbit the Earth. According to the Astronaut Wives Club press release, Rene Carpenter’s “modern attitudes are source of both conflict and courage for the other Astrowives. Over time, Rene finds her own voice and awakens to a higher calling in politics, civil rights and women’s issues.”
Astronaut Wives Club is based the best-selling book of the same name by Lily Koppel. The show was created by Stephanie Savage, who has previously written for shows such as The O.C. and Gossip Girl. She was also an executive producer on Rockne S. O’Bannon’s ill-fated Cult. The show will also serve as a Chuck reunion for Strahovski, since that show’s co-creator Josh Schwartz serves as a producer on Astronaut Wives Club.
After capturing viewers attention as the beautiful badass Sarah Walker in Chuck, Strahovski has gone on to major roles in both Showtime’s Dexter and Fox’s 24 revival, Live Another Day. On the sci-fi front, many gamers will recognize her as the voice and visual model for the Mass Effect series’ Miranda Lawson.
Strahovski joins an AWC cast that already includes JoAnna Garcia Swisher as Betty Grissom, Odette Annable as Trudy Cooper, Erin Cummings as Marge Slayton, Dominique McElligott as Louise Shepard, and Azure Parsons as Annie Glenn. On the astronaut side of things, the show has cast Joel Johnstone as Gus Grissom, Bret Harrison as Gordon Cooper, Kenneth Mitchell as Deke Slayton, and Desmond Harrington as Alan Shepard. Astronaut Wives Club will premiere sometime midseason on ABC.
