Saturday Night Live writers Ben Marshall, John Higgins and Martin Herlihy are getting a boost from some comedy luminaries for their feature debut.
Conan O’Brien, SNL favorite Bowen Yang, Hacks breakout Meg Stalter, former The Daily Show writer X Mayo and Superstore alum Nichole Sakura have joined the untitled buddy comedy from Universal Studios. The film centers on three childhood friends who head off to a nearby mountain in search of treasure rumored to be buried there. Filming began earlier this month in North Carolina, with SNL’s Paul Briganti directing.
Marshall, Higgins and Herlihy wrote the script and star. The men behind the project rose to prominence as the comedy trio Please Don’t Destroy. The trio went from making viral videos to writers on SNL to a breakout moment on the sketch series in October with a Digital Short lampooning hard seltzers.
O’Brien, one of the most recognizable faces in late night TV history, counts writing on SNL among his early credits. He concluded his TBS talk show Conan last year, capping 28 years as a late night host. He currently hosts the podcast Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, and his digital brand, Team Coco, was recently sold to SiriusXM. O’Brien is repped by WME, Pariah and 42West.
Yang broke out on SNL, recently starred in the Hulu film Fire Island and has the Universal film Bros due out in September. Yang is represented by UTA, 3 Arts and attorney Isaac Dunham.
Stalter became a favorite on HBO’s Hacks thanks to her portrayal as assistant from hell Kayla. She is developing the series Church Girls for HBO Max. Stalter is represented by UTA, Range Media Partners and Jackoway Austen.
X Mayo earned an Emmy nomination in 2020 as a writer on The Daily Show and is among the stars of the NBC sitcom American Auto. As an actor, she also appeared in The Farewell. X Mayo is repped by UTA and Frankfurt Kurnit.
Sakura stars in the Hulu comedy Maggie, which debuted earlier this month. She is best known for her work on Superstore; her credits also include Shameless. Sakura is repped by Brillstein Entertainment Partners, Gersh and Ginsberg Daniels.
Judd Apatow, who has an overall deal with Universal, produces via Apatow Productions. Mosaic’s Jimmy Miller is also producing. Universal has the comedy set for an Aug. 18, 2023, release.
Source: Hollywood
