‘Clarice’: Elizabeth Klaviter Named Showrunner For New CBS Series

EXCLUSIVE: The Resident executive producer Elizabeth Klaviter has joined the newly picked-up CBS drama series Clarice, from Alex Kurtzman and Jenny Lumet, as executive producer/showrunner.

Klaviter will serve as day-to-day showrunner on the Silence of the Lambs sequel starring Rebecca Breeds, working alongside executive producers Kurtzman and Lumet, who wrote the pilot episode and will continue to have hands-on creative involvement.

Clarice was one of two CBS dramas, along with The Equalizer, to receive a straight-to-series pickup this month after their pilots could not be produced due to the coronavirus pandemic. Along with other 2020 CBS pilots, Clarice got an order for a second script. The high-profile drama also had previously opened a mini writers room to break stories for the pilot.

2020 CBS Pilots & Series Orders

Clarice is a deep dive into the untold personal story of FBI Agent Clarice Starling (Breeds) as she returns to the field in 1993, six months after the events of The Silence of the Lambs. Brilliant and vulnerable, Clarice’s bravery gives her an inner light that draws monsters and madmen to her. However, her complex psychological makeup that comes from a challenging childhood empowers her to begin to find her voice while working in a man’s world, as well as escape the family secrets that have haunted her throughout her life.

Klaviter and Lumet executive produce with Secret Hideout’s Kurtzman and Heather Kadin. Aaron Baiers is a co-executive producer. The series, from MGM Television and CBS Television Studios in association with Secret Hideout, is slated for a midseason 2020-21 premiere. Maja Vrvilo will direct the pilot episode from a script by Lumet and Kurtzman.

“Jenny and I feel so fortunate to be working with Elizabeth Klaviter as our partner on Clarice,” Kurtzman said. “Her extraordinary body of work, her wit and her unique perspective will be invaluable in making this show as singular as our title character.”

Klaviter most recently served as executive producer on Fox’s medical drama series The Resident. Prior to that, she spent nearly a decade working on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy and spinoff Private Practice, rising to co-executive producer on the mothership series. She is repped by APA, Circle of Confusion and attorney Jared Levine.