‘Homeland’s Raza Jaffrey Set By Starz For ‘The Serpent Queen’

EXCLUSIVE: Raza Jaffrey has just joined the cast of Starz drama series The Serpent Queen in the role of Francois Guise. He starts work immediately.

Series stars Samantha Morton as Catherine De Medici, based on the book Catherine de Medici: Renaissance Queen of France by Leonie Frieda. The eight-episode series was written and is executive produced by Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road). Catherine de Medici went from commoner to the center of power when she married into the 16th century French court as an orphaned teenager expected to bring a fortune in dowry and produce many heirs. It’s a rough start, as she discovers her husband is in love with an older woman, her dowry is unpaid and she’s unable to conceive. Yet, only with her intelligence and determination, she manages to keep her marriage alive and masters the blood sport that is the monarchy better than anyone else, ruling France for 50 years.

Stacie Passon will direct multiple episodes, including the premiere episode. Executive producers are also Francis Lawrence and Erwin Stoff. The Serpent Queen is produced for Starz by Lionsgate Television and 3 Arts Entertainment.

After making a mark in Homeland where his portrayal as Asair Khan landed him a SAG award nomination, Jaffrey was most recently seen in the Paramount feature The Rhythm Section with Blake Lively and Jude Law. He continues to recur on the rebooted Lost In Space series for Netflix, and will next appear in the streamer’s feature film Sweet Girl, as well as the upcoming AMC animated series Pantheon and Renny Harlin’s upcoming horror/thriller Refuge.

He’s repped by United Agents, ICM Partners and Principal Entertainment.