Ben Stiller is attached to lead a dramedy series set in the music industry currently in the works at HBO, Variety has confirmed.
Titled “The Band,” the official logline of the series states that it “offers an inside look at the music industry centered on Oscar (Stiller), a pop impresario and talent mogul beset by scandal who is tasked with forming a new act in order to save his career – and perhaps his soul.”
The show hails from Sarah Violet Bliss and Charles Rogers, who also serve as executive producers and showrunners. Stiller and John Lesher executive produce under their Red Hour Films banner, along with Savan Kotecha Michael Ellenberg and Lindsey Springer of Media Res. Media Res will co-produce with HBO.
The role would mark a rare lead acting role for Stiller, who has mostly been focused on working behind the scenes as a director and producer for the last several years, including his work on the hit Apple TV+ series “Severance” and the Showtime limited series “Escape at Dannemora.” He did star in the streaming comedy film “Nutcrackers” recently, and is set to reprise his role as Hal the orderly in “Happy Gilmore 2.” As an actor, he is known for starring in films like “Meet the Parents,” “There’s Something About Mary,” “Zoolander,” “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” the “Night at the Museum” films, and “Tropic Thunder.” He also directed and co-wrote “Zoolander” and “Tropic Thunder,” and has worked both in front of and behind the camera on several of his films.
More to come…