Yahoo Lifestyle Ben Stiller to Lead Dramedy Series ‘The Band’ in Development at HBO
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.”
More from Variety
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.
Stiller and Red Hour are repped by WME and Sloane Offer.
Bliss and Rogers are best known for co-creating the TBS comedy series “Search Party” with Michael Showalter. That series ran for five seasons and received strong critical acclaim upon its debut in 2016. The duo’s other credits include the Prime Video series “Mozart in the Jungle” and “Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later.”
They are repped by UTA, Rise Management, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.
Ellenberg, a former HBO executive, founded Media Res. The company’s current slate includes “The Morning Show” and “Pachinko” at Apple TV+ as well as the upcoming shows “The Miniature Wife” at Peacock and “Enigma Variations” starring Jeremy Allen White and “Thumblite” starring Rosamund Pike at Netflix.
Deadline first reported “The Band” was in development.
Best of Variety
Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
