NBC's 'Cruel Intentions' Series Trades Reese Witherspoon for Kate Levering

Days after the announcement that Sarah Michelle Gellar would reprise one of her most iconic roles (no, not Buffy), there's bittersweet news: Reese Witherspoon won't join her in the Cruel Intentions NBC sequel. Instead, Drop Dead Diva star Kate Levering will be taking the role of Annette Hargrove in the series pilot, who goes against Kathryn Merteuil years after the events of the film.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Levering will be playing the role of the innocent Annette in the pilot, which takes place years after the events of the Dangerous Liaisons-based teen drama. While it's great news that the character, who was basically Kathryn's nemesis in the film, will be involved in the new show, it's a pity that it won't be Witherspoon reprising her role and joining Gellar once again.

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It seems the Wild actress wasn't even approached for the role but Witherspoon is, however, definitely getting more heavily involved with television these days. She's set to star in the limited HBO series Big Little Liars alongside fellow Oscar winner Nicole Kidman. Behind the scenes, Entertainment Weekly reports that Witherspoon's production company is working on a new pilot for ABC, which will involve Grey's Anatomy alum T.R. Knight, who played George O'Malley in the Shonda Rhimes series.

In any case, the new Cruel Intention project, currently in the casting process, was announced only a few days back. More than 15 years after the events of the film, Kathryn (Gellar) tries to take control of her family's company, as well as the "soul" of Bash Casey (Taylor John Smith), the son her late stepbrother Sebastian (Ryan Philippe in the movie) had with Annette (Witherspoon/Levering).

In the pilot, Annette married since the scandalous events of the film, and her husband raised Bash as though he were his own. However, when she became a widow, her teenage son found out Sebastian was his real father and set out to San Francisco to meet his biological family, including cunning Kathryn.

Sophina Brown will co-star as Naomi, ex-wife to Kathryn's husband.