Zak Santiago's Life Becomes TV Series 'Deacon,' Headed to Toronto's New Content Market
A boxer, a street criminal, a Catholic deacon, a DJ — and now a TV series. Front Street Pictures has acquired the life story rights to Zak Santiago for a biopic drama titled Deacon, set to be pitched to international buyers at the Toronto Film Festival's inaugural Content Market The Hollywood Reporter.
The series follows Santiago "Santi" Luna, a former boxer and street criminal who finds redemption as a Catholic deacon. According to the producers' synopsis, the story moves between an East Vancouver church, federal prison, a boxing gym, a community centre and a nightclub DJ booth — worlds of faith, boxing, music, acting and community service that Santiago himself has inhabited.
Santiago is a parish deacon at Holy Rosary Cathedral in Vancouver. As an actor, he has had recurring roles in Netflix's Virgin River and Untamed, a multi-episode arc in HBO's Peacemaker, and a role in season three of MGM's Billy the Kid. He also served as a technical advisor and coach on the Emmy-winning series Shogun and as a faith content consultant on Showtime's Yellowjackets.
Veteran writer and producer Jonathan Lloyd Walker has been tapped to showrun and produce Deacon — meaning he will serve as the lead creative voice and day-to-day manager of the series. Walker's prior credits include the series Van Helsing and House of David. He is joined as a fellow creator by John Cassini, who is also an executive producer and head of development at Front Street Pictures. Cassini's acting credits span Watson, Accused, Intelligence, Se7en and The Game, among others.
Front Street Pictures is backed by Blink49 Studios. The company also co-produces the TV series Wild Cards and the upcoming mystery thriller YAGA, which will world-premiere at TIFF as part of its Primetime program. Front Street has a history with Santiago beyond this project: in November 2025, the company publicly thanked him for supporting independent film in Vancouver.
What makes Deacon stand out is the sheer number of worlds it straddles. A biopic about a man who is simultaneously a clergyman, a former athlete, an actor and a DJ is a tough shape to fit into any single genre — and the creative team behind it has built careers in exactly the kind of gritty, character-driven television that could hold all of those threads together.
The project is heading to Toronto at a moment when TIFF is launching its first-ever Content Market, a dedicated space for buying and selling television and streaming projects alongside the festival's film programming. That gives Deacon a fresh storefront: international buyers — the networks, streamers and distributors who license shows for their territories — will get a first look at a series that does not yet have a broadcast or streaming home attached.
No episode count, release date or platform attachment has been announced. The series is in the packaging stage, where producers assemble the creative elements — showrunner, cast, scripts — before seeking a commission from a buyer.
