Comedy Central announced today that it has greenlit 10 episodes of the weekly, half-hour scripted series, “Big Time in Hollywood, FL.” Produced by Red Hour and Brillstein Entertainment Partners, the new series is executive produced and written by Alex Anfanger and Dan Schimpf, along with Red Hour’s Ben Stiller, Debbie Liebling, Stuart Cornfeld and Mike Rosenstein, and Brillstein Entertainment Partners’ Lee Kernis and Brian Stern. Anfanger will also star in the series, along with Lenny Jacobson, Kathy Baker, Stephen Tobolowsky and Jon Bass. Schimpf directed the pilot.
“Ben, Alex and Dan have fulfilled my career-long dream of having a show based in Hollywood, FL,” said Alterman.
“‘Big Time’ combines the directorial style of Hitchcock, the acting prowess of Streep, the budget of House of Payne, and the nutritional value of Velveeta. I think people’s minds will be blown wide open. For real,” said Stiller.
“Big Time in Hollywood, FL” follows two delusional brothers and self-proclaimed filmmakers, played by Anfanger and Jacobson, who are kicked out of their parents’ house and forced to fend for themselves for the first time in their lives, leading them on an epic journey in pursuit of their American dream. Baker and Tobolowsky will co-star as the brothers’ parents. Monika Zielinska and Adam Londy are the Executives in Charge of Production for Comedy Central.
Anfanger and Schimpf, both NYU Tisch Arts 2008 graduates, met when they were randomly paired as roommates in their freshman year and immediately started collaborating on comedic shorts. After graduating, they stumbled upon a scripted reality show they found “overwhelmingly pointless,” and decided to write a show starring a vapid character in a high stakes world without limits. This became their hit web series “Next Time on Lonny,” which is soon to release its second season, produced by Red Hour and Maker Studios. Anfanger also appears in the feature film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, directed by and starring Ben Stiller at Fox.
