Emmy winners Andy Samberg and Jean Smart are set to star in the May-December romantic comedy 42.6, which is in the works at Amazon Studios.
Craig Gillespie (Cruella) will direct from a script from Seth Reiss (The Menu) based on a story that Samberg co-wrote with Reiss after coming up with the idea on his own. He’ll play a young man who undergoes an experimental procedure that sees him cryogenically frozen in order to save his own life. When he wakes up 42.6 years later having not aged a day, he finds himself alone in a future with no one to turn to except for his much older ex-girlfriend (Smart).
Samberg will produce 42.6 under his Party Over Here banner along with Ali Bell, while Gillespie, who’s riding high off of Hulu’s acclaimed limited series Pam & Tommy, will also produce the film. I really like the pairing of Samberg and Smart on paper, and the Austin Powers-esque premise is fun as well, but in the end, it always comes down to execution.
Samberg starred in the long-running cop sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine and led the 2020 time loop comedy Palm Springs, which he also produced. Reiss spent many years working for Samberg’s old SNL buddy Seth Meyers as a writer on his late-night show, though he’s hotter than ever before after earning a WGA Award nomination for The Menu, which he co-wrote with Will Tracy and has grossed nearly $80 million worldwide.
Smart is also in the midst of a career renaissance, having won back-to-back Emmys for her dazzling turn in the HBO Max series Hacks. She also earned strong reviews for her work in a pair of HBO shows — Watchmen and Mare of Eastown — and she most recently co-starred in Damien Chazelle‘s Babylon.
In addition to Cruella, Gillespie’s varied feature credits include Lars and the Real Girl and I, Tonya, as well as Million Dollar Arm and the Fright Night remake starring Colin Farrell.
UTA represents Samberg, Gillespie, and Reiss, while Smart is repped by WME and Untitled Entertainment. Gillespie and Reiss are managed by Rumble Media and Brillstein Entertainment Partners, respectively. The Hollywood Reporter broke the news.
