Get Shorty remake: Epix casts Chris O'Dowd

Twenty-one years after Barry Sonnenfeld’s comedy Get Shorty became a box office hit, it’s poised to make a splash as an hour-long TV series on EPIX, and EW has confirmed the upcoming dark comedy might’ve found its leading man in Irish actor Chris O’Dowd.

O’Dowd is in final negotiations to join the series’ cast as Miles Daly, a notorious thug in a murderous Nevada crime ring. As a means to improve life for his daughter, Miles moves to Los Angeles in the hopes of becoming a movie producer, though he ultimately reverts to his criminal dealings and launders money from a new production.

Deadline, which first reported news of O’Dowd’s casting, also reports actor Ray Romano is in negotiations for a lead role in the project. If cast, Romano will play Rick, a has-been film producer who attempts to guide Miles through his career in Hollywood.

EPIX previously announced in May it had ordered a 10-episode first season of the series, which is based on Sonnenfeld’s 1995 film of the same name. O’Dowd and Romano’s roles are adapted from characters played by John Travolta and Gene Hackman in the film, respectively. Travolta won a Golden Globe for his performance in the film, which spawned the 2005 sequel, Be Cool.

The Get Shorty TV series will be created and executive-produced by Davey Holmes of Shameless and Damages fame. The project marks EPIX’s third foray into original programming, with their Berlin Station and Graves set to premiere later in 2016.

O’Dowd, perhaps best known for his role in the 2011 comedy Bridesmaids, has also appeared in films like This Is 40, Thor: The Dark World, Calvary, and St. Vincent. He also recurred on the first season of HBO’s Girls, and later toplined Christopher Guest’s short-lived Family Tree across eight episodes for the network.