The path to comedy stardom is normally: 1) have a breakout role, 2) become wildly overexposed by signing up to every role going, and 3) see increasingly diminishing returns to your star vehicles. But Melissa McCarthy has so far defied those expectations. Since exploding with her Oscar-nominated turn in “Bridesmaids” six years ago, McCarthy’s box-office record has been stellar, helping to turn films like “Identity Thief” and “Spy” into smashes, and even making modest successes of lower-concept projects like “The Boss” and “Tammy,” films where the only real marketing hook was ‘Melissa McCarthy is in this movie.’
It’s telling that perhaps her biggest disappointment so far, “Ghostbusters,” still made $128 million domestically. With her turn as Sean Spicer on SNL winning even more fans for the comic star, and TV show “Mike & Molly” now wrapped up, McCarthy’s hotter than ever, and while she’s soon to try out more dramatic territory with this fall’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?,” from “Diary Of A Teenage Girl” director Marielle Heller, McCarthy looks to be diversifying further by signing onto…an R-rated puppet noir?
The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that McCarthy will star and produce, a long-gestating comedy that will be directed by Brian Henson, son of “The Muppets” creator Jim. A sort of midpoint of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” and Peter Jackson’s “Meet The Feebles,” it’s set in a world where humans and puppets co-exist, but the latter are an oppressed minority. McCarthy will play a human detective who teams up with her alcoholic puppet partner to solve a series of murders of the stars of an 1980s children’s TV show called “The Happytime Gang.”
The project’s been in the works for nearly 10 years now, with stars including Cameron Diaz, Katherine Heigl and Jamie Foxx circling at various points (the latter as late as last year), but McCarthy seems like she could be the one to finally get the project before cameras, with STX now serving as distributor: the actress comments, “When a really good script combines puppet strippers, Los Angeles’ underbelly and comedy, it’s like my fever dream has finally come true.” You had us at ‘puppet strippers.’ McCarthy’s slate is clear at present, with “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” and broader comedy “Life Of The Party” both wrapped, so this could end up getting before cameras sooner rather than later.