Two stars of the classic sitcom New Girl are reuniting for a new project. Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. are set to renew their on-screen friendship in a far more twisted way than the bonds they shared in their LA loft. They're going to star in a new Hulu pilot based on one of Ben Stiller's strangest films; a disappointment upon its release, it has since developed a cult following.
According to reports, Johnson and Wayans will star in a new pilot re-imagining of 1996's The Cable Guy. Johnson will play Chip Douglas, an old-school cable TV installer who's feeling the world of streaming and algorithms pass him by. When he's hired by his long-lost childhood friend Steven Stephens (Wayans), the two reconnect...until Chip's enthusiasm turns into obsession. It will be the third time Johnson and Wayans unite on-screen; they also headlined the 2014 Luke Greenfield comedy Let's Be Cops. And while Johnson is set to star in NBC's new detective comedy Sunset P.I., he intends to star in both series if The Cable Guy is picked up to series.
The show that claimed the most of your answers is the world you were built for. If two tied, both are shown — you're complicated enough to straddle two Sheridan universes.
You are a Dutton — or you might as well be. You understand that some things are worth protecting at any cost, and that the modern world's indifference to history, to land, to legacy, is not something you're willing to accept quietly. You lead from the front, you carry your family's weight without complaint, and when someone threatens what's yours, you don't escalate — you finish it. You're not cruel. But you are absolute. In Yellowstone's world, that combination of ferocity and loyalty doesn't make you a villain. It makes you the only thing standing between everything that matters and everyone who wants to take it.
You thrive in the chaos of high-stakes negotiation, where the money is enormous, the margins are thin, and the wrong word in the wrong room can cost everyone everything. You're a fixer — the person called when a situation is already on fire and needs someone with the nerve to walk into it. West Texas oil country rewards exactly what you are: sharp, adaptable, unsentimental, and absolutely clear-eyed about what people want and what they'll do to get it. You're not naive enough to think this world is fair. You're smart enough to be the one deciding who it's fair to.
You are a Dwight Manfredi — someone who has served their time, paid their dues, and arrived somewhere unexpected with nothing but their reputation and their wits. You adapt without losing yourself. You build loyalty through respect rather than fear, though you're not above reminding people that the two aren't mutually exclusive. Tulsa King is for people who are still standing when everyone assumed they'd be finished — who find, in an unfamiliar place, that they're more capable than the world gave them credit for. You don't need a throne. You build one, wherever you happen to land.
You carry the weight of a system that is broken by design, and you do it anyway — because someone has to, and because you're the only one positioned to do it without the whole thing collapsing. Mike McLusky's world is for people who are comfortable operating where there are no good options, only less catastrophic ones. You speak every language: law enforcement, criminal, political, human. That fluency makes you invaluable and it makes you a target. You've made your peace with both. Mayor of Kingstown belongs to people who understand that keeping the peace is not the same as being at peace — and who do the job regardless.
Jim Carrey (who was paid a then-record $20 million USD) stars as Ernie "Chip" Douglas, a cable installer who's hired by Steven Kovacs (Matthew Broderick), on the recommendation of his friend Rick (Jack Black). In exchange for setting Steven up with some illegal movie channels, Chip ingratiates himself into his life, desperately attempting to become his best friend. Even as Chip's unhinged actions result in Steven reuniting with his girlfriend, Robin (Leslie Mann), Steven tries to break things off...and that's when Chip decides to make Steven's life a living Hell. Directed by Stiller from a script by Lou Holtz Jr., the movie turned a profit at the box office, but was seen as a disappointment in the wake of Carrey's recent mega-hits like Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and The Mask. Critics were also turned off by its dark tone. However, it has become a cult classic, with critics re-appraising its satirical look at TV culture and male friendship.
The Cable Guy pilot was written by New Girl's Rob Rosell and Cobra Kai veterans Joe Piarulli and Luan Thomas; all three will showrun and executive produce. Johnson and Wayans Jr. also executive produce with Neal H. Moritz and Pavun Shetty of Original Film.
The Cable Guy-inspired pilot is in development at Hulu. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.
