Entertainment NOW

2 • November 20 - 26, 2022 Entertainment Now By Sarah Passingham TV Media E veryone, please welcome to the stage the latest true crime-based drama mini- series, "Welcome to Chip- pendales!" Premiering Tuesday, Nov. 22, on Hulu, the series stars Kumail Nanjiani ("The Big Sick," 2017) as Chippendales founder Somen "Steve" Banerjee, following the entrepreneurial businessman as he builds his male revue empire and becomes embroiled in shock- ing crimes along the way. The storied history of the Chip- pendales dancers begins in 1979 when Banerjee attempts to bring in more female patrons to his Los Angeles club by introducing a male striptease troupe into the club's social calendar. When the concept takes off, Banerjee enlists the help of club promoter Paul Snider, portrayed by Dan Stevens ("Legion") in "Welcome to Chip- pendales," who flips the idea to another choreographer. Snider's involvement sets off a series of events that leaves several people in the Chippendales orbit dead. The choreographer Snider lets in on the revolutionary new exotic dance format, Emmy- winning producer Nick De Noia, is portrayed by "The White Lotus" star Murray Bartlett, whose char- acter is yet again doomed from the start in "Welcome to Chip- pendales." The miniseries is based on the true events documented in the book "Deadly Dance: The Chip- pendales Murders," by K. Scot Macdonald and Patrick Montes- DeOca, so for those who have yet to read the book or old news releases, please beware of spoil- ers ahead. After several tenuous years as business partners, with De Noia handling the company's touring performances and Banerjee fum- ing over the legally binding cock- tail napkin contract they signed, De Noia is killed in his New York City office in 1987. Given the na- ture of their relationship, Banerjee is high on the suspect list. It won't be long, however, until tragedy strikes nearly every per- son involved in the early Chippen- dales days, leaving devastation that has had true crime fanatics' eyeballs glued to the story for decades. There is so much more to the story than the business dealings between Banerjee, Snider and De Noia, and the rest of the cast filling in the "Welcome to Chip- pendales" tale is packed with Hollywood star power. Annaleigh Ashford ("American Crime Story: Impeachment") plays Banerjee's wife, Irene; Juliette Lewis ("Yel- lowjackets") stars as passionate Chippendales patron Denise; Quentin Plair ("Roswell, New Mexico") takes on the role of Chippendales dancer Otis; stage and screen star Andrew Rannells ("Black Monday") portrays a club investor; Robin de Jesus ("Law & Order: Special Victims Unit") is Banerjee's accomplice, Ray Colon; and Nicola Peltz Beckham ("Bates Motel") stars as Playboy model and actress Dorothy Strat- ten. Nanjiani's portrayal of Baner- jee, however, is one of the biggest draws to the series thus far, as it's a far cry from his usual repertoire of the quirky, funny guy (such as Dinesh in "Silicon Valley" and Jibran in 2020's "The Lovebirds"). This switch in character even necessitated a change of posture that gave Nanjiani a constant reminder of the serious, unsatis- fied character he had to become during filming. In an interview with E! Online, Nanjiani said he developed a knot in his shoulder while embodying Banerjee onscreen and decided, "That's where Steve lives. I can't get rid of this knot until I wrap." Later in the interview, Nanjiani notes his Banerjee has a "certain kind of masculinity" that presents in "aggressive, even violent ways ... if you're not processing your sadness or your fear." He also added that his take on the Chip- pendales founder is "a guy who was completely cut off from his inner life, from his emotions. He's very scared of what he is and he doesn't like himself." Cover Story Murray Bartlett in "Welcome to Chippendales" Drama miniseries 'Welcome to Chippendales' takes viewers backstage Ready Rental 3 x 4 Hayley Siefert 3 x 2 Letters & Numbers Sudoku Fill in the grid so that every row,every column, and every 4x4 box contains the digits 1 through 9 AND the letters A-F. Solution on page 12. Advertise Your Business In Call Advertising at 217-477-5105

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