Joel McHale has been cast in one of the lead roles in the upcoming Fox comedy series “Animal Control,” Variety has learned.
The single-camera show was picked up straight-to-series at Fox in July. Per the official logline, the show “will follow a group of local Animal Control workers whose lives are complicated by the fact that animals are simple, but humans are not.”
McHale will play Frank, described as “an opinionated, eccentric Animal Control officer who may not have gone to college but is still the most well-read person in the room. A former cop, Frank tried to expose corruption in his department, but his efforts got him fired, which may explain why he’s so cynical and curmudgeonly. He has an almost superhuman ability to understand animals. Humans…not so much.”
The role marks a return to leading a broadcast TV series for McHale, who is perhaps best known for his starring role in the NBC comedy series “Community.” The show aired five seasons on NBC and one on the now defunct Yahoo Screen streaming service. It was recently announced that the cast would reunite for a movie follow-up at Peacock.
McHale is also known for hosting the E! series “The Soup” and for film appearances like “Spider-Man 2,” “Ted,” “The Happytime Murders,” and “Spy Kids: All the Time in the World.” He can also currently be seen in the DC series “Stargirl” at The CW.
He is repped by UTA and Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole LLP.
“Animal Control” will be Fox’s first wholly owned live-action comedy. It hails from writers and executive producers Bob Fisher, Rob Greenberg, and Dan Sterling, with Tad Quill also executive producing. McHale will executive produce in addition to starring. Fox Entertainment Studios will produce. McHale will attend MIPCOM Cannes to support the series when it is presented to international buyers.
“Dan, Rob, Tad and Bob had envisioned Joel as the lead of ‘Animal Control’ from the very moment we began development, and we are all ecstatic to have him on board,” said Michael Thorn, president of entertainment for Fox Entertainment. “Joel’s acerbic wit and ability to bring a comedic lens to everything he’s involved with make him the perfect person to bring Frank to life.”
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