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Drive By: Judy Greer Lands Lead in HBO's "Suburban Shootout"

Holy Judy Greer, Batman!

The former Miss/Guided star has been cast in HBO's comedy pilot Suburban Shootout, the US adaptation of the darkly comic UK series about warring gangs of, um, homicidal suburban housewives in a seemingly idyllic and picturesque town.

In a fantastic twist of fate, Greer has been cast as the lead in Suburban Shootout, where she will play the wife of a police chief who moves from urban sprawl for quieter pastures, only to learn that the 'burbs are just as every bit dangerous as the city.

The script, from writer Michelle Ashford and executive producer/director Barry Sonnenfeld, was absolutely fantastic and pitch perfect (they did have amazing underlying material to work with, after all) and I am glad that rather than cast some faceless ingenue for the lead, they went with the quirky and adorable Greer, who will bring a distinct edge to the role.

Casting on the pilot for Suburban Shootout has become a hotbed for solid female actors, with Kelly Preston, Kerri Kenney, and Rachael Harris already booked.

I haven't been so happy about a Judy Greer casting since she first lit up the screen as disturbed glasses-on-hair-up executive assistant Kitty Sanchez on the still-much-missed Arrested Development. I'm extremely eager to see how HBO will translate the comedy format of Shootout to the US. Fingers crossed that it's more in line with The Office and less with Coupling...

Stay tuned.

What's On Tonight

8 pm: Price is Right Million Dollar Spectacular (CBS); Law & Order (NBC); Farmer Wants a Wife (CW); Lost (ABC; 8-10 pm); American Idol (FOX; 8-10 pm)

9 pm:
Criminal Minds (CBS); Law & Order (NBC); Farmer Wants a Wife (CW)

10 pm: CSI: New York (CBS); Law & Order (NBC); Boston Legal (ABC)

What I'll Be Watching

8-10 pm: Lost.

Missed the last two episodes of Lost or just itching to watch them again? You're in luck as ABC does us a solid and reairs both "Cabin Fever" and "Something Nice Back Home." Now if only they were airing the fourth season finale this week instead of next week. I'm going insane from anticipation.

9 pm: MI-5 on BBC America.

If you missed MI-5 (aka Spooks) when it aired on A&E a few years back, you can catch it tonight on BBC America. On tonight's installment ("The Special"), the gripping fourth season opener, the team rushes from Danny's funeral after a terrorist detonates a bomb in a market and threatens to explode more if their demands are not met.

10 pm: Top Chef on Bravo.

On tonight's episode ("Restaurant Wars"), the chefs are forced to work on the line at a diner during the breakfast rush; Jose Andres stops by to put the chefs to the test; the contestants must open and run competing restaurants in one of the all-time favorite Top Chef elimination challenges.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Cool! I was not a fan of Miss/Guided and am happy to see that the lovely Judy Greer's talents will (hopefully) be put to better use.
eAi said…
The original British version never quite worked for me. It's seemed too overplayed, or something. Either way, it's entirely possible the US version will be better - the concept I thought was great, just the way it was executed seemed off...

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