LeVar Burton to Voice Barclay in ‘Nancy Drew’ Spinoff ‘Tom Swift’
LeVar Burton is set to appear in this week’s episode of Nancy Drew, which will serve as a backdoor pilot for a potential Tom Swift spin-off series.
The Star Trek: The Next Generation actor will voice Barclay, Tom Swift’s steadfast AI companion and tough-love mentor. Barclay is described as “Tom’s Hype Man, Tom’s confidante and Tom’s friend” who was created by the young genius at just eight years old. Barclay has been with Tom ever since, hopping from his smartwatch, his tablet, his laptop, and even the screens of his car to offer advice, analysis, and encouragement.
Tian Richards (The Quad) will play the titular Tom Swift, the billionaire inventor who is thrown into a world of sci-fi conspiracy and unexplained phenomena after his father mysteriously disappears. With Barclay by his side, Tom heads out on a quest to find the truth, leaving behind his luxury comforts to battle and stay one step ahead of an Illuminati-scale group determined to stop him.
The adventure kicks off in the May 12 episode of Nancy Drew when Tom crashes into one of Nancy’s investigations, an event that the pair believe has potentially supernatural or paranormal consequences.
Tom Swift is produced by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage’s Fake Empire and CBS Studios and co-created by Melinda Hsu Taylor and Noga Landau (showrunner and co-creator of Nancy Drew, respectively) alongside Cameron Johnson (Empire). Taylor and Landau will write and executive produce the show.
Burton, known for his role as Kunta Kinte in the ABC miniseries Roots and as the longtime host of the PBS Kids educational television series Reading Rainbow, recently launched the LeVar Burton Book Club in partnership with Fable, the social reading app. The app allows members to read together “while sharing highlights, comments, links, and pictures to discuss books” with the aim to help build “human connections.”
“As a lifelong advocate for literacy, the opportunity to launch my book club on Fable’s wonderful new platform is extremely exciting and timely,” Burton said in a statement Tuesday. “This partnership will help foster the importance of storytelling while sharing my love of reading.”
The award-winning actor is also set to guest host Jeopardy! over the summer.
Nancy Drew, Wednesday, 9/8c, The CW.
