Back to…work: Kelsey Grammer lands new sitcom
It didn’t take long for Kelsey Grammer to bounce back from his Back to You flop stint. The Fox sitcom, a high profile one at that with Emmy-winner Patricia Heaton as his co-star, was dumped by the network recently. Kelsey was so bummed out that he even tried to get other networks, CBS in particular, to pick up the news room comedy. No dice. Back to You was a dead shark.
Now, less than two weeks later, Kelsey Grammer has been cast in a new ABC sitcom called Roman’s Empire. This is big news for a big star and he’s the emperor in the title. He’s playing Roman.
Roman’s Empire is not a three-camera, traditional sitcom, which has been Grammer’s playground since Cheers. Frasier may have been one of the best three-camera sitcoms ever. As an actor, Kelsey’s accustomed to having an audience watching him work. Empire is a single-camera comedy — like The Office or My Name Is Earl or Samantha Who? — and revolves around a nice guy named Leo (Nick Thune), who’s dumped by his heiress-like girlfriend (Christine Woods), but remains connected to her crazy family, the Prettys. That’s especially true of Roman Pretty, the family patriarch, an outspoken, outrageous character.
The show is a joint venture between CBS Paramount and ABC Studios. Perhaps Kelsey’s call to Les Moonves hooked him up with this project? Al Higgins is writing the pilot, and Ashton Kutcher is one of the executive producers (he’s everywhere these days, have you noticed?)
Like so many other pilots these days, Roman’s Empire is based on a British comedy of the same name. It ran in 2007 and starred Neil Dudgeon in the Roman role. According to those who’ve seen it, Roman’s Empire is similar to Arrested Development. In fact, it may be a case of imitation being the sincerest form of flattery since it came out after AD. Of course, the trick for this show, if it runs, will be to figure out how to be as good as Arrested Development without getting canceled for low ratings.
One thing regarding Kelsey coming on board; in the crowded batch of 17 pilots ABC still has under consideration, he tips the scales in the direction of the network giving it a pick up at some point.