Jeremy Renner to star in Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Mayor of Kingtown’ for Paramount+, Antoine Fuqua to exec produce

MTV Entertainment Studios announced during Wednesday’s ViacomCBS Streaming Event presentation that Academy Award nominee Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker, Wind River) has been tapped as the lead in the highly anticipated drama Mayor of Kingstown exclusively for Paramount+. Prolific director, Antoine Fuqua (Academy Award -winning Training Day), has signed on as executive producer in the new series from Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Taylor Sheridan – co-creator of Yellowstone, cable’s most watched show of 2020 – who recently signed a multi-year pact with ViacomCBS and MTV Entertainment Group. 

Mayor of Kingstown follows the McLusky family – power brokers in Kingstown, Michigan where the business of incarceration is the only thriving industry.  Tackling themes of systemic racism, corruption and inequality, the series provides a stark look at their attempt to bring order and justice to a town that has neither. Mayor of Kingstown will be executive produced by Sheridan, co-creator Hugh Dillon, Jeremy Renner, Antoine Fuqua, David Glasser, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari and Michael Friedman. MTV Entertainment Studios, Sheridan’s Bosque Ranch Productions and 101 Studios will produce. 

“I am excited to dig into the complex and rough-around-the-edges character of Mike McLusky (the Mayor of Kingstown),” said Jeremy Renner. “In a world otherwise forgotten in society, Mike serves as a flawed system of checks and balances. Taylor has brought to life a layered and poignant universe that is not only incredibly intriguing but also more relevant than ever.” 

“When Taylor told me about Mayor of Kingstown, I immediately wanted to be a part of it,” said Antoine Fuqua.  “The series offers a comprehensive look into the brutal prison system where socio-political issues run rampant. Prisons are a forgotten world to most of the population and yet represent a microcosm of society as a whole.”

Photos courtesy of AP