Hand of God creator and Cross showrunner Ben Watkins and his Blue Monday Productions banner has signed with UTA.

The Hollywood writer, filmmaker and actor will be represented by the global talent, entertainment and sports company in all areas. Watkins was most recently with WME, since 2018, and earlier had been with CAA.

The signing follows Watkins boarding as showrunner and executive producer on Cross, a long-gestating series based on James Patterson’s Alex Cross novels moving forward at Amazon’s Prime Video. The series order from Paramount Television Studios and Skydance Television will see Aldis Hodges (Black Adam) playing the title role.

Earlier, Watkins created the Amazon Originals series Hand of God, and has executive producing credits on USA Network’s Burn Notice, Apple’s Truth Be Told and Hulu’s Wu-Tang: An American Saga. Along with his wife Kandi, Watkins launched Blue Monday Productions and set up projects at AMC, HBO, FX, NBC and Hulu.

On the feature side, Watkins is set to pen a script based on a New York Times article that chronicles the odyssey of former FBI agent and whistle blower Terry Albury. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is attached to star, with Michael B. Jordan and Elizabeth Raposo on board to produce through Outlier Society.

Watkins began his career in Hollywood as an actor, which included his role as Dr. Wesley Carter on The Young and The Restless. That was followed by a gig to write, co-direct and star in the short film Guest to Ref. That short was adapted into a feature script for Universal Studios.

Watkins also joined the writers room for Burn Notice, and eventually became executive producer. His Blue Monday Productions banner launched a paid mentorship program, the Breakthrough Artist Award, to support talented artists with a commitment to community service.

And Watkins supports community programs and people looking to improve issues around civil rights, public education and homelessness. He is a founding member of the Sweat Equity Alliance, a community activist organization based in the South Bay, and he is also active with the Writers Guild of America on committees and as a core member of the Showrunner’s Training Program.

Watkins will continue to be represented by Hirsch Wallerstein.