Bridgewater Actress Stars In Political Crime Drama 'Chase Street'

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — From portraying an inmate in Netflix's "Orange Is The New Black" to now playing a Correctional Officer in "Chase Street", Christina "Uniqe" Castellanos is making her name known in the acting world.

Bridgewater resident Castellanos plays Correctional Officer Kirkland, who is a Russian officer who also smuggles drugs into prison.

"C.O. Kirkland is a very gritty character, very dirty," Castellanos said.

While on set Castellanos had the opportunity to work with stars such as Clifton Powell of "Ray" and "Rush Hour", Vincent Pastore from the "Sopranos", Jade Yorker from the "Gridiron Gang", and Taral Hicks, an R&B singer who had a role in "Bronx Tale".

"It was wonderful to be around everyone on set and the good vibes. Everyone was like a family and the energy they brought was amazing," Castellanos said. "To be blessed to work with Clifton Powell… I did a scene with him and it was one of the highlights of my life."

Thomas Freeman Jr., a producer and writer of Chase Street, noted how it was "interesting how [Castellanos] plays the C.O. here and inmate in 'Orange Is The New Black'. It's like full sides of the spectrum."

"Honestly it was pretty interesting to go from playing a hardcore inmate and ended up being a dirty C.O. I can say it's not that much of a difference because the dirty C.O. is still doing criminal activity. But to actually have the uniform on, it was definitely, pretty surreal. I felt like for me it was a challenge, not saying the role was hard, but to step outside of the box a little bit and play a cop role when I normally play the street side of things. I loved it," Castellanos said.

The first 3 episodes of the Chase Street were released on Amazon Prime on July 2 and the next 3 episodes are set to be released shortly.

Freeman Jr. and Benny Matteo, of Camden, produced the series together and are excited to release it now amid the pandemic.

"We've had great feedback from Hollywood producers, and there is no reason to wait anymore to release this. With the pandemic there is a lack of creation… There is not a lot of productions going on. This is a very good time for us and people will gravitate towards it," Freeman Jr. said.

For more information on Chase Street or to watch is visit amazon.com/Chase-Street or watchchasestreet.com or facebook.com/chasestreet856.

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