Amy Ryan is moving into series-regular territory with The Retrievals, the upcoming Netflix drama from Molly Smith Metzler.
Ryan is set to star opposite Emilia Jones in the series, which marks Netflix’s third project from Metzler, the creator and executive producer behind Maid and Sirens. The drama is inspired by Susan Burton’s Peabody-winning New York Times podcast of the same name.
The Retrievals centers on a group of IVF patients who band together against Yale University after undergoing procedures without anesthesia because a nurse had stolen their fentanyl. Ryan will play Carla Russo, described as a veteran nurse at Yale Fertility Center who pleads guilty to diverting large quantities of fentanyl and replacing it with saline, leaving many patients to endure egg retrieval surgery without anesthesia.
Jones will portray Gabby Clemente, one of Carla’s victims, who becomes the leader of a groundbreaking legal fight against Yale University.
Metzler is writing and serving as showrunner on the series. She executive produces through her Quiet Coyote banner alongside Colin McKenna and LuckyChap, both of whom previously collaborated with her on Maid and Sirens. Dani Gorin, Tom Ackerley and Margot Robbie are executive producers for LuckyChap.
The executive producing team also includes Caitlin Roper for The New York Times, as well as Burton, who wrote the podcast that inspired the series.
Lila Neugebauer is also reuniting with Metzler on The Retrievals. Neugebauer, who directed one episode each of Maid and Sirens, will direct the pilot episode and executive produce.
The casting is a notable step for Ryan, as The Retrievals marks her first series regular role. Ryan is an Oscar nominee for Gone Baby Gone and is known on television for major recurring roles in HBO’s The Wire, NBC’s The Office, Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building and Season 1 of Apple TV’s Sugar.
Ryan will next be seen in Tom McCarthy’s A Statement, which is set to premiere at the New York Film Festival. She is represented by Gersh and Brecheen Feldman Breimer Silver Thompson.
With Ryan joining Jones, The Retrievals brings together a high-profile cast and a creative team with multiple prior collaborations, while adapting a podcast that already comes with major recognition from the Peabody Awards.