Steve Carell (The Office, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, The Big Short) is ready for a vacation after lending his dulcet tones to Illumination’s Despicable Me 4 and John Krasinski’s upcoming family comedy IF. Thankfully, Netflix has a plane ticket with Carell’s name on it, so long as he’s willing to join the cast of The Four Seasons, a forthcoming comedy series led by Tina Fey (Saturday Night Live, Mean Girls).
The Four Seasons, a retread of the 1981 Universal movie of the same name, is a co-creation between Fey, her 30 Rock co-star Lang Fisher, and Tracey Wigfield. Details about Carell’s character remain a mystery, though the cast list for Alan Alda’s 1981 comedy could provide some clues. In 1981’s The Four Seasons, three couples vacation together every season. After one couple divorces, feelings of betrayal and more spawn criticisms of one another, but the things that keep them together are stronger than those that might tear them apart. Alan Alda directed and wrote the 1981 version, which stars Alda, Carol Burnett, Len Cariou, Sandy Dennis, Rita Moreno, Jack Westen, Bess Armstrong, and Elizabeth Alda.
Fey’s version of The Four Seasons comes from Universal Television and Fey’s Little Stranger, Inc. production studio. Fey, Fisher, Wigfield, David Miner, Eric Gurian, and Jeff Richmond are the executive producers, with Alda and Marissa Bregman producing.
The Four Seasons marks a reteaming for Fey and Carell, who starred together in the 2010 comedy Date Night. Set in New York City, Date Night finds Phil (Carell) and Claire Foster (Fey), a married couple, caught in a case of mistaken identity when the couple attempt a walk on the “wild side” by engaging in a glamorous and romantic evening together.
Other projects of Carell’s include a role as a hotel manager in Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City and the part of psychotherapist Alan Strauss in the Hulu thriller The Patient. In the series, Carell’s Alan Strauss finds himself held prisoner by a serial killer (Domhnall Gleeson), who demands he help him curb his homicidal urges. You can also catch Carell reprising his role as the villain-turned-do-gooder in Despicable Me 4, coming to theaters on July 3, 2024.