Acting greats Jeff Goldblum and Danny DeVito are pairing together for a 30-minute comedy series in development at Amazon. Goldblum's and DeVito's careers are as strong as ever: Goldblum will be playing Grandmaster in November's Thor: Ragnarok, and last month he signed on to reprise his Jurassic Park character Ian Malcolm for Jurassic World 2. DeVito, meanwhile, recently finished the 12th and perhaps funniest season yet of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and is reuniting with director Tim Burton for the upcoming live-action film version of Disney's animated classic, Dumbo.
The pair are now taking up a new tune together, as a feuding ex-pair of former music icons in an untitled Amazon comedy series. The show reportedly follows the exploits of Matt Downey (Goldblum) and Arlo Finkleman (DeVito), a pair of aging musicians who are forced to work together once again, despite them having little more than contempt for one another.
Here is how Variety further describes the plot of the currently-untitled Amazon series:
"As the talented but strong-willed pair attempt to reconcile, they turn to the people who somehow manage to love these two incandescent idiots — their wives, ex-wives, children, managers, friends and lovers — all of whom turn out to be as brilliant, infuriating, and frustratingly lovable as Matt and Arlo themselves."
Goldblum and DeVito's new series sounds like a hoot, if not for any other reason the sheer comedic force of the actors involved. DeVito, of course, has probably received more notice for his comedy prowess, but there's no question that Goldblum is the go-to-guy to bring levity to drama or action-oriented projects. It'll be interesting to see who plays the straight man to the foil should the Amazon series go that route, because both actors clearly have the ability to play one role or the other.
As far as the premise is concerned, movies about feuding musicians can be quite entertaining if the right talent is involved. Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer have proven time and again that they're the masters of the hapless musician sub-genre with This is Spinal Tap and A Mighty Wind; and fans should be excited knowing that Goldblum and DeVito are in the same league as the comedy-style documentary trio, no matter if their Amazon comedy goes the mock doc or scripted narrative route. No production frame or premiere date has been announced for the series, which was created by Tim Long, a longtime producer on The Simpsons.
Perhaps the biggest challenge Goldblum and DeVito will be facing is finding time to fit the Amazon series into their busy schedules. DeVito is also currently working on a Broadway stage show, and he's luckily been given some breathing room since it was announced this week that Always Sunny season 13 is on hold for a year. It's hard to say how big Goldblum's involvement will be in Jurassic World 2 will be, since he is a late addition to the film, which has been in production for months.
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Source: Variety