Like a certain cigar-chomping leader of The A-Team, we love it when a plan comes together. When that plan includes comedy legend Christopher Guest getting to make his new TV series with Chris O’Dowd in the lead, we love it even more.
You might recall that, back in May, word leaked of Guest’s plan to craft a series with regular collaborator Jim Piddock. With a working title of Family Tree, it would focus on O’Dowd’s character researching his heritage.
Things have moved on since then, and now HBO and BBC 2 have joined forces to pick up the series directly, skipping the pilot stage on the strength of the idea and the people involved.
O’Dowd will be Tom Chadwick, who loses his job and his girlfriend but inherits a mysterious box from a great aunt he’d never met. He starts to dig into his family tree and discovers a world of unusual characters and stories. And yes, it will apparently have the feel of A Mighty Wind, Best In Show and other Guest films.
Guest and Piddock will be overseeing the show, with Guest directing and both performers planning to show up on screen. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that members of the writer-director's regular ensemble might also score roles.