Freddie Highmore Joins Drama Series LEONARDO as Cast Member and Executive Producer

Freddie Highmore, known for his roles in Finding Neverland, Bates Motel, and The Good Doctor, has joined the cast of the upcoming drama series Leonardo. Highmore will also executive produce the series that is based on the life of the artist Leonardo da Vinci, but with liberties. Deadline reports the following synopsis:

Leonardo, a drama series that takes a fresh look at the life and legacy of the iconic artist Leonardo da Vinci, positing that he was a gay outsider who used his work as a way of hiding his true self. Each episode will examine one of da Vinci’s artworks for hidden clues about a tortured artist struggling for perfection.

Highmore will play Stefano Giraldi, a fictional police detective who frames the narrative, investigating da Vinci as the suspect in a murder case and digging into his past.

Frank Spotnitz is producing the series, and he had to say this in a statement:

“Capturing the character of Leonardo has been one of the most fascinating and exciting challenges of my career. It’s hard to fathom that a man this extraordinary could even have existed, let alone the human impulses that drove him to achieve such extraordinary things.”

When talking about his role in the series, Highmore said:

“The structure of the show is framed by this murder investigation where Leonardo has been accused of murder. My character, Stefano Giraldi, he is trying to figure out what happened. He is trying to understand the truth. And at least initially, he doesn’t really have any great appreciation for Leonardo and for his artistry in general.

“I’m excited for the mind games between my character and Leonardo. Hopefully, they’ll be these wonderful, tennis match scenes between the two of them as each of them is trying to suss the other one out and figure out what the realities of the other person are. They have preconceptions of what the other person is like but they don’t know them at all on a genuine level. And so, in a funny way, my character arrives with perhaps the same preconceptions or ideas of Leonardo as the audience will. And throughout the course of the show, will try and figure out who that person really is instead of the one that everyone has been saying he is. The myths, positive or negative, that people have perpetuated.”

This sounds interesting, and Highmore is one of my favorite actors. I always enjoy everything he’s in, so I will definitely give it a shot. Does this sound like an interesting take on the life of the classic artist to you?