The Madness: Colman Domingo to Star in New Netflix Conspiracy Thriller

Colman Domingo is returning to Netflix. The Euphoria Emmy winner’s next role will be in The Madness, an eight-episode limited series ordered at the streamer where Domingo starred in the films First Match and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. In the conspiracy thriller series, media pundit Muncie Daniels (Domingo) must fight for his innocence and his life after he stumbles upon a murder deep in the Poconos woods. As the walls close in, Muncie strives to reconnect with his estranged family — and his lost ideals — in order to survive. 

Chernin Entertainment, which produced the Fear Street trilogy and Slumberland for Netflix, is backing the project under a first-look deal with the streamer. Stephen Belber (O.G., The Laramie Project) executive produces and serves as creator and co-showrunner with VJ Boyd (Justified, S.W.A.T.). Clément Virgo (Greenleaf) will direct and executive produce the first two and the concluding two episodes.

Quyen Tran (Maid) and Jessica Lowrey (Perry Mason) will each direct two middle episodes of the series from executive producers Peter Chernin (Netflix’s Luther: The Fallen Sun), Jenno Topping (Red Sparrow), and Kaitlin Dahill (Marvel’s Runaways).

“Stephen Belber and VJ Boyd thrive in creating suspense-driven emotional stories that connect with broad audiences,” said Jenno Topping, President, Chernin Entertainment. “We look forward to seeing them bring this timely conspiracy thriller to life and to continue our partnership with Netflix.”

Said Peter Friedlander, Vice President of Scripted Series, Netflix, US and Canada: “The Madness is a fresh take on the conspiracy thriller — turning the genre on its head with its multi-layered characters, propulsive action and swift pace. We are proud to have such a powerhouse team assembled to bring this dynamic story to life for Netflix viewers around the world, and to continue producing great entertainment with team Chernin.”

Domingo currently stars as cunning zombie apocalypse survivor Victor Strand in AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead, which returns for its eighth and final season in May. The Walking Dead spin-off will air its shortened season 8 in two six-episode blocks that will conclude later in 2023.