“General Hospital” alum Kimberly McCullough (ex-Robin Scorpio-Drake) has signed on to direct the coming-of-age dramedy “Wayward Girls,” a live-action film for Available Light Productions, which is run by kids programming vet Nancy Kanter.
Kanter, who is fresh off of a three-year overall deal at Netflix, is relaunching her company with several projects in the works, including the live-action “Wayward Girls,” the animated movie “Penny Phantom,” which is based on the novel “Little Thieves” by Margaret Owen; the animated movie “The Circus Ship,” based on the picture book of the same name; and the animated preschool comedy series “Alexander the Post Fox” working in partnership with Kevin Jonas.
“My time at Netflix was a gift that allowed me to extend my creative development beyond Kids & Family, and while those projects will always be closest to my heart, I am excited to see some of my YA and adult projects move forward,” said Kanter in a statement released to Deadline, which first reported the news. “I leave having had the great pleasure of working alongside so many talented folks on the live-action and animation teams, and I couldn’t be more grateful for their support. I look forward to landing new series and movies in just the right homes and continuing to develop material that speaks to me and to broad audiences in surprising and authentic ways.”
According to Deadline, Available Light Productions has a robust slate of original series and movies, which Kanter is spearheading with head of development William Goldberg, with the expectation to take out in-development projects and broaden their reach among kids, families and general audiences.
McCullough will direct from an original screenplay by Kristin Belka Maier.
Since departing “General Hospital” as a full-time cast member in 2013, McCullough has made sporadic returns to the series, taking part in key story moments involving her character, specifically the character’s friends and family. She’s been directing several high-profile projects in Hollywood since, including episodes of “K.C. Undercover,” “Pretty Little Liars,” “Fuller House,” “The Conners,” “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” “The Bold Type,” “Fantasy Island,” and more recently “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” for Disney+.
McCullough directed 14 out of 38 episodes of the TV series spinoff of “High School Musical,” more than any other director, and also served in multiple capacities as a producer, including as an executive producer or co-executive producer during the show’s third and fourth (final) seasons.
Other high-profile projects directed by McCullough include “With Love” for Amazon, “How I Met Your Father” for Hulu,” along with “Boo, Bitch” and “Neon” for Netflix, among others.