It’s been a success on Channel 4 this side of the pond with three series under its post-feast belt. But America has taken its time to digest Friday Night Dinner – a pilot was shot for NBC a couple of years back, though despite starring The West Wing‘s Allison Janney and Monk‘s Tony Shalhoub, it failed to get to the main course. Now CBS are giving it a go, with creator Robert Popper’s Popper Pictures on board alongside WBTV, 3 Arts and Big Talk.
Documenting the weekly family meals of the Goodman family, the UK version stars Tamsin Greig (Episodes) as put-upon matriarch Jackie, wife to eccentric Martin (Paul Ritter, who often walks around shirtless) and grown up sons Adam and Jonny (The Inbetweeners‘ Simon Bird and Tom Rosenthal) who engage in slapstick comedy fights. Mark Heap plays Jim, their mentally unstable neighbour, always accompanied by dog Wilson who appears to terrify him. How CBS will approach the material remains to be seen but Popper’s writing credit (the show is based on his experiences) and a straightforward farce format shouldn’t see too much retooling.
Source: Deadline
