Prepare to have your sides split because a who’s who of comedic delights are joining the cast of Judd Apatow‘s upcoming comedy, The Comeback King. Universal Pictures is in charge of the pic, which stars Glen Powell as a country star in freefall. Today, Deadline announced several additions to the cast, with Leanne Morgan (Leanne), Kumail Nanjiani (Taskmaster, Night Thoughts), Atsuko Okatsuka (Father), Vanessa Bayer (I Love That for You), Tig Notaro (Army of the Dead, One Mississippi), Chris Fleming (Chris Fleming: Live at the Palace), Mike Birbiglia (Don’t Think Twice), and Big Fella (The Runarounds) stepping up to the stage. Previously announced cast members include Cristin Milioti, Madelyn Cline, Stavros Halkias, and Li Jin Hao.
Universal and Apatow are tight
In addition to his starring role, Glen Powell co-wrote the script with Apatow, who will also direct and produce the film through his Apatow Productions banner. Apatow and Universal are thick as thieves after releasing many of Apatow’s other features, including The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Funny People, This Is 40, Trainwreck, and The King of Staten Island. Powell produces alongside Dan Cohen through their joint venture, Barnstorm, while Kevin Misher produces through Misher Films. Powell and Universal recently joined forces for Twisters, which grossed $372M globally. Powell is hot s**t in Hollywood right now, and his pairing with Apatow will turn heads.
Powell picks up the pen
The Comeback King will be Apatow’s first feature since the Netflix comedy Bubble in 2022 and his first made for theaters since The King of Staten Island in 2020 (although that film ended up going direct-to-streaming due to the pandemic). Powell’s The Comeback King comedy with Apatow isn’t his first writing project. He co-wrote the screenplay for 2023’s Hit Man with Richard Linklater and is currently working on a script for reviving the environmentally friendly superhero Captain Planet. He’s also a contributing writer for Chad Powers, the Hulu sports comedy series about a disgraced college quarterback named Russ Holliday who disguises himself as Chad Powers and walks onto a struggling southern football team to revive his football career. A second season is on the way.
I didn’t think much of The Comeback King until I read the news about today’s cast additions. With so many hilarious personalities joining the film, I don’t see how this could miss, especially if they keep the script loose and let the comedians improvise. What do you think? Let us know in the comments!
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