Emmy winner John Leguizamo has signed on to the cast of Spike TV’s Waco set to begin shooting in April 2017. Spike’s targeting a 2018 premiere for the six-part event series based on the law enforcement standoff with the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas. The 51-day siege began on February 28, 1993 and ended on April 19, 1993 when the compound went up in flames, killing nearly all of the Branch Davidians including the cult’s leader, David Koresh.
Leguizamo will be playing ATF Agent Robert Rodriguez “who was sent into Koresh’s Mount Carmel to gather evidence and build a federal case against the Branch Davidians but forged a bond with the people inside.” He joins a cast that includes Michael Shannon as lead FBI negotiator Gary Noesner and Taylor Kitsch as David Koresh. Shannon, Kitsch, John Erick Dowdle, Drew Dowdle, Salvatore Stabile, Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein, David Glasser, Jennifer Malloy, and Megan Spanjian are executive producing, with John Erick Dowdle directing from a script by Drew Dowdle.
“We are thrilled to have John in this part. He brings phenomenal range and authenticity to everything he does,” stated Ted Gold, Senior Vice President, Scripted Original Series for Paramount. “The role of Robert Rodriguez is little known, but utterly fascinating as he was the only undercover agent to infiltrate David Koresh’s compound.”
John Leguizamo’s credits include Bloodline, John Wick, Ice Age, Chef, The Lincoln Lawyer, The Happening, Carlito’s Way, Romeo + Juliet, and Summer of Sam.
The Plot: Waco will reveal the untold story exploring the true life details leading up to and chronicling the 1993 standoff between the FBI, ATF and David Koresh’s spiritual sect, The Branch Davidians. Told from several perspectives of those most intimately involved in both sides of the conflict, this story has never been shared on television before – and is surprising in its stark contrast to the media narrative at the time and what is remembered of Waco almost 25 years later.
