Tony Nominee Margo Martindale Joins Patrick Wilson & Jennifer Ehle in CBS Supernatural Pilot

Tony nominee Margo Martindale will co-star with previously announced leads Patrick Wilson and Jennifer Ehle in the pilot for as as-yet untitled CBS-TV supernatural medical drama, according to Deadline.com. In a last-minute casting change, Martindale replaces another theater vet, S. Epatha Merkerson, as Wilson’s sassy and strong-willed assistant. Oscar winner Jonathan Demme is directing the pilot.

Featuring a script by Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich), the show centers on an ultra-competitive surgeon (Wilson) whose life is changed forever when his ex-wife (Ehle), a doctor running a free clinic, dies and begins teaching him the meaning of life from the hereafter.

Martindale received a Tony nomination for her performance as Big Mama in the 2003 Broadway revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and created the role of beauty shop owner Truvy in the 1987 off-Broadway premiere of Steel Magnolias. She is currently playing Mags Bennett, the head of a redneck Kentucky crime family, in the FX drama series Justified and has had recurring roles in Dexter and The Riches. Her many film credits include Million Dollar Baby, as Hilary Swank's unsupportive mother.