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Ozark star Laura Linney tapped as female lead of new MGM+ comedy series, American Classic [Image @itsmelauralinney on Instagram]

Laura Linney (Ozark) has been tapped as the female lead of a new MGM+ comedy, American Classic. She leads opposite Kevin Kline and Jon Tenney in a 30-minute comedy series from co-creators Bob Martin, Michael Hoffman and Fifth Season, together with Mar-Key Pictures,

Likely Story and Anonymous Content producing. Read on to learn more about the new half-hour comedy.

Laura Linney and Kevin Kline in American Classic on MGM+ [Image @mgmplus on Instagram]

According to Variety, the plot of American Classic centers on a Broadway star and notorious narcissist, Richard Bean (Kline). He suffers a spectacular public meltdown and returns to his hometown and the family-run theater, where he first became aware of his own brilliance.

Meanwhile, when Richard arrives in town, he is shocked to discover that his father, the former artistic director, has lost a step,...

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For the first time since her acclaimed Netflix series Ozarkconcluded, Laura Linney is returning to TV. The four-time Emmy winner will star opposite Kevin Kline in the new comedy series American Classic. The MGM+ series will begin production in New Jersey this summer.

Kline will star in the series as Richard Bean, a temperamental and egotistical Broadway legend who has a public meltdown and retreats to his hometown, Millersburg, where his family ran a well-regarded theater. Once he gets back, however, he finds that the once-respected playhouse has fallen on hard times, and is now running low-rent dinner theater. His brother Jon runs the theater with his wife, Kristen (Linney), who is also the small town's mayor. Richard has a complicated history with Kristen: decades ago, they were in love, and tried to achieve Broadway stardom together. However, she tired of his selfishness and retreated back to Millersburg, where she...

Kevin Kline and Jon Tenney need to make room on the stage for Laura Linney as she joins the cast of MGM+’s upcoming eight-episode series American Classic. Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin (The Prom, Slings and Arrows) co-created American Classic, with Hoffman directing the series focusing on a narcissistic Broadway star looking to bring his old stomping grounds back to form.

Here’s an official description of American Classic courtesy of MGM+:

“American Classic centers on Broadway star and notorious narcissist Richard Bean, played by Kline, who suffers a spectacular public meltdown and returns to his hometown and the family-run theater where he first became aware of his own brilliance. When he arrives, he is shocked to discover that his father, the former artistic director, has lost a step and that the once-respected theater, now run by his brother Jon (Tenney), played by Tenney, and his wife Kristen (Linney), has become,...

Multiple Emmy winner Laura Linney has found her next TV project.

Linney has joined the cast of American Classic, a comedy series at MGM+. She’ll star opposite Kevin Kline and Jon Tenney in the show, in which a disgraced Broadway star (Kline) returns to a family-run theater in his hometown. The show comes from creators Michael Hoffman (Soapdish, The Last Station) and Bob Martin (Slings and Arrows).

Kline plays Broadway star and notorious narcissist Richard Bean, who suffers a spectacular public meltdown and returns to his hometown and the family-run theater where he first became aware of his own brilliance. When he arrives, he is shocked to discover that his father, the former artistic director, has lost a step and that the once-respected theater, now run by his brother Jon (Tenney) and his wife (Linney) has become, by necessity, a low-rent dinner theater serving roast beef and murder mysteries.

Four-time Emmy Award winner Laura Linney (Ozark) has been tapped as the female lead opposite Kevin Kline and Jon Tenney in American Classic, MGM+’s upcoming half-hour comedy series from co-creators Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin and Fifth Season, with Mar-Key Pictures, Likely Story and Anonymous Content producing.

American Classic centers on Broadway star and notorious narcissist Richard Bean (Kline), who suffers a spectacular public meltdown and returns to his hometown and the family-run theater where he first became aware of his own brilliance. When he arrives, he is shocked to discover that his father, the former artistic director, has lost a step and that the once-respected theater, now run by his brother Jon (Tenney) and his wife Kristen (Linney) has become, by necessity, a low-rent dinner theater serving roast beef and murder mysteries. He decides to save the town, the theater, and the world by presenting a great American...

MGM+ has commissioned “American Classic,” an eight-episode, half-hour comedy series from co-creators Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin. The series, produced by Fifth Season with Mar-Key Pictures, Likely Story, and Anonymous Content, is scheduled to begin filming in New Jersey this year. Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Kline will star as Richard Bean, a narcissistic Broadway star […]

From Broadway to Dinner Theater: MGM+ Presents American Classic...

The voice of Kevin Kline has been pleasantly popping up from time to time on the animated comedy show Bob's Burgers for nearly 15 years. His distinct (and distinguished) voice is perfect for his rich and elitist landlord character, Mr. Fischoeder, and he always brings a chuckle. But in the live-action scene, Kline has mostly been a dramatic force, especially in the recent series, Disclaimer. Of course, the Oscar winner has given great dramatic performances ever since 1982's Sophie's Choice, but it's always a treat when he busts his comedy chops in live-action. On that note, MGM+ announced today an eight-episode series order for American Classic, a half-hour comedy series starring none other than Kevin Kline.

American Classic comes from co-creators Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin. The series, which will debut with eight episodes, comes from Fifth Season as the studio with Mar-Key Pictures, Likely Story, and Anonymous Content producing. Kevin...

William Shakespeare once said, “All the world’s a stage,” but for Kevin Kline, the stage is a way of life, and his love for theater is vast. MGM+ announced today an eight-episode series order for American Classic, a half-hour comedy series from o-creators Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin (The Prom, Slings and Arrows). American Classic stars Kevin Sline as Richard Bean and Jon Tenney as Jon Bean. Hoffman directs the series, with production kicking into high gear later this year in New Jersey.

Here’s an official description of American Classic courtesy of MGM+:

“American Classic centers on Broadway star and notorious narcissist Richard Bean, played by Kline, who suffers a spectacular public meltdown and returns to his hometown and the family-run theater where he first became aware of his own brilliance. When he arrives, he is shocked to discover that his father, the former artistic director, has...

Kevin Kline will star in a new half-hour comedy called “American Classic,” which has been picked up to series by MGM+.

The “Disclaimer” actor will star alongside Jon Tenney (“The Closer”) in the show, co-created by Michael Hoffman (“Soapdish”) and Bob Martin (“The Prom”).

The eight-episode series follows a narcissistic Broadway star named Richard Bean (Kline), who returns to his hometown after suffering a spectacular public meltdown. He’s headed back to his family-run theater, where he first fell in love with acting, but is surprised to see that his brother Jon (Tenney) has turned the venue into a low-rent dinner theater serving roast beef and murder mysteries. So, Richard sets out to save the town, the theater and himself by presenting a great American classic on the dinner theater stage.

The series is set to enter production in 2025 in New Jersey. Hoffman will direct the pilot episode and executive...

Exclusive: MGM+ has given an eight-episode series order to American Classic, a half-hour comedy starring and executive produced by Oscar winner Kevin Kline. Jon Tenney co-stars in the series from co-creators Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin.

This marks only the second half-hour comedy series in MGM+’s history after 2016’s Graves, starring Nick Nolte, which ran for two seasons. (The linear channel and streaming service’s other half-hour original was the 2021 dramedy Bridge and Tunnel.)

American Classic had been in the works at MGM+ for more than three years; it was announced as part of the development slate of the platform (then named Epix) on February 3, 2022. Fifth Season has since come on board as studio, with Mar-Key Pictures, Likely Story and Anonymous Content producing.

The comedy centers on Broadway star and notorious narcissist Richard Bean (Kline) who suffers a spectacular...

Bryan Cranston arrived on Broadway to two full houses last week, as the much-anticipated Network played a couple previews at the Belasco Theater and contributed $293,220 to Broadway’s $37,230,401 total for Week 24 (ending Nov. 11).

Overall box office for the 38 Broadway productions reflected a 13% jump in receipts over the previous week, with attendance of 306,015 showing a 9% bump.

While Network, directed by Ivo van Hove and co-starring Tony Goldwyn and Tatiana Maslany, was standing-room-only, with a strong average ticket price of $144, another movie-inspired production might have a tougher road ahead: King Kong opened at the Broadway to pans and $915,800, about 60% of potential. Attendance was strong – 13,269, about 95% of capacity – but an average ticket price of $69 hardly bares teeth. Still, the week included opening night comps and press seats, so way too soon to write this monkey off just yet.

Mike Birbiglia’s The New One opened Nov. 11 at the Cort to a much warmer...