Christine Lahti, Annie Potts, Jimmy Smits and Ken Stott Set for God of Carnage

A new cast for Yasmina Reza’s Tony-winning black comedy God of Carnage will begin performances on November 17 at Broadway’s Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Christine Lahti will play Veronica, replacing Marcia Gay Harden; Annie Potts has signed on as Annette, replacing Hope Davis; Jimmy Smits will be Alan, replacing Jeff Daniels; and original West End cast member Ken Stott will recreate his performance as Michael, replacing James Gandolfini.

Matthew Warchus’ production of God of Carnage opened on Broadway on March 22, 2009, and quickly became one of the biggest hits of the season. All four original stars were nominated for Tony Awards, with Marcia Gay Harden taking home the Best Actress trophy. Described as a comedy of manners without the manners, the play deals with the aftermath of a playground altercation between two boys and what happens when their parents meet to talk about it.

Lahti starred in the West Coast premiere of Wendy Wasserstein’s final play, Third, at the Geffen Playhouse, following appearances on Broadway in The Heidi Chronicles and the Lifetime movie version of An American Daughter. She received an Oscar nomination for Swing Shift and an Oscar as a first-time director for her short film Lieberman in Love. Lahti won an Emmy for Chicago Hope and stars in four episodes of the new season of Law & Order: SVU. Other New York theater credits include Little Murders, Loose Ends, Present Laughter, Landscape of the Body, The Woods, Hooters and Division Street.

Potts will be making her Broadway debut in God of Carnage. Known for her role as as Mary Jo Shively on TV’s Designing Women, Potts has also appeared in the films Ghostbusters, Toy Story, Pretty in Pink and Texasville. She received two SAG Award nominations for Outstanding Female Actor in the Lifetime television series Any Day Now, an Emmy nomination for Love and War, a Golden Globe nomination for Corvette Summer and a Genie Award for Heartaches. She has numerous television credits and appeared off-Broadway in The Vagina Monologues.

Smits appeared on Broadway in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Anna in The Tropics. His other stage credits include Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, Hamlet, The Ballad of Soapy Smith, Ariano, Buck and Little Victories. His film work includes The Jane Austen Book Club, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, Price of Glory, Running Scared, The Believers, Old Gringo, Vital Signs and Switch as well as the upcoming Mother and Child and Backyard. His television credits include six consecutive Emmy nominations and one win for performance on L.A. Law and five Emmy nominations for his work on NYPD Blue, for which he received a Golden Globe award, two additional nominations and four SAG Award nominations. His other TV credits include Latin Music USA, an Emmy-nominated guest-starring role on Dexter, The West Wing, Solomon and Sheba, Marshall Law, Steven King's The Tommyknockers, The Broken Cord, Glitz, Dangerous Affection and The Cisco Kid.

Stott is a four time Olivier-nominated actor. He originated the role of Michael in the London premiere of God of Carnage. He also in the original cast Carnage playwright Yasmina Reza’s Art.More recently, Stott starred in A View From A Bridge in the West End, as well as many National Theatre of Great Britain productions such as The Magistrate, The Recruiting Officer, The Prince’s Play and Broken Glass. His film credits include Charlie Wilson’s War, Girl In A Café, Casanova, The Mighty Celt and King Arthur.

The current God of Carnage cast will play their final performance on November 14.