Viola Davis and Julius Tennon’s JuVee Productions Inks First-Look Deal With Universal Global TV

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The recently formed Universal Global Television is building up its slate of creative deals.

Viola Davis and Julius Tennon‘s JuVee Productions has inked a first-look deal with the studio, which was born in June as NBCUniversal combined UCP and Universal International Studios under Beatrice Springborn. Under the deal, JuVee will develop and produce series for UGT.

The first-look pact with Davis and Tennon’s company follows UGT signing an overall deal with All Her Fault creator Megan Gallagher, who has two projects in the works at the studio.

JuVee’s initial project with UGT is Pawn, a romantic drama based on a short story by Kennedy Ryan (Before I Let Go). Chantelle M. Wells (Daredevil: Born Again, Yellowjackets) is adapting the story and will executive produce with Davis, Tennon, JuVee head of TV Andrew Wang and Ryan.

“From our first meeting together, we felt uniquely connected on how we plan to bring empowering and fearless voices to the screen,” Davis and Tennon said in a statement. “We have long been fans of Kennedy Ryan since reading her simmering Before I Let Go, and Chantelle Wells has worked on some of the most iconic shows of the last decade, carving out her power as a storyteller who is willing to push the boundaries of expectations. To be able to work with these powerhouses to bring Pawn to life with UGT speaks directly as to why we created JuVee.”

Pawn centers on a woman named Gina Jones, who “makes a deal to become a ‘pawn’ for a St. Louis crime family, the Rossis, in exchange for money to pay for her ailing grandmother’s medical treatments,” the show’s description reads. “The Rossis want to take down their rivals, the Norths, by targeting their heir apparent, Drayden, who is also Gina’s new boss. But when Gina and Drayden’s attraction to each other becomes undeniable, she has to navigate both families’ threats and secrets to go from pawn to queen.”

“Viola, Julius and Andrew have built JuVee into a home for dynamic and powerful stories – a commitment we are proud to partner with them on, beginning with the excellent and gripping Pawn,” said Springborn.

JuVee’s productions include the Showtime series The First Lady and feature films G20 and The Woman King, all of which starred Davis. The company is repped by CAA and Lichter Grossman.

Wells is repped by CAA, Amplified Management, and Felker Toczek. Ryan, who also has a first-look TV deal with Universal Studio Group, is repped by CAA, Untitled, BookEnds Literary Agency, GKSD Law and 2PM Sharp.