In what is surely a surprising development, we've learned that Kyle Chandler has been cast opposite Christopher Abbott to star in CATCH-22, an upcoming limited series co-directed and executive produced by George Clooney. Chandler will play Colonel Cathart for the Hulu series, a role that Clooney himself was originally set to portray. As the project now stands, Clooney will assume the role of Scheisskopf, allowing him more time to concentrate on directing and producing the project.
The six-part limited series is written by Luke Davies and David Michôd, and based on the novel of the same name by author Joseph Heller. When viewers tune in for the show, they'll find that CATCH-22 is set in Italy during World War II, and tells the story of the incomparable, artful dodger Yossarian (Abbott), a bombardier for the U.S. Air Force, who is furious because thousands of people he has never met are trying to kill him. But his real problem is not the enemy, but rather his own army which keeps increasing the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempt to avoid his military assignments, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule which specifies that a concern for one’s own safety in the face of dangers which are real and immediate is the process of a rational mind; a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but a request to be removed from duty is evidence of sanity and therefore makes him ineligible to be relieved from duty.
Of course, this is not the first time that the story of CATCH-22 has been adapted to screen. In 1970, director Mike Nichols presented a full-length feature version of the tale starring Martin Balsam and Alan Arkin. When Clooney arrives in the new series, his role as Scheisskopf will find him in the boots of a training commander at cadet school in California. He's a man that's known to be as ambitious as he is humorless and cruel – additionally, Scheisskopf is obsessed with parades and winning parade tournaments. According to Deadline, Scheisskopf has a knack for making the lives of cadets under his command a living hell, even though deep down he's just a bitter asshole. He's the kind of person you'd want to ship overseas. And then: he is. As the Head of Operations for the entire Mediterranean Theater, Scheisskopf lands himself straight back into Yossarian’s life. Lucky Yossarian, amiright? Clooney will helm the series alongside executive producing partner Grant Heslov in addition to Ellen Kuras.
Will you be checking out CATCH-22 when it comes to Hulu? Let us know in the comments section below.