YOUR FRIENDS' ACTIVITY

    Will Ferrell, Ben Stiller Headed Back To TV Comedy

    Access Hollywood – Thu, Mar 7, 2013

    Will Ferrell is making his small screen return!

    The former "Saturday Night Live" funnyman will star in a new spoof show, "The Spoils of Babylon," on IFC, the comedy network announced on Thursday.

    PLAY IT NOW: Ben Stiller Honored At The 26th American Cinematheque Award

    Ferrell will play fictional famous author Eric Jonrosh in the series, described as a "blowsy century--spanning saga" which chronicles the "sexy and dramatic lives" of a family with a colossal oil fortune.

    "'The Spoils of Babylon' spans three generations, taking viewers from the oil fields of Texas to boardrooms in New York City, through world war battlefields and velvet sheeted bedrooms," the network said in a release. "As the story unfolds, the booze, the passion and the heartache lead to illegal arms deals and international espionage with the Shah of Iran, not to mention the creation of the doomed sub-¬prime market."

    VIEW THE PHOTOS: Laugh It Up With Hot Shots Of Will Ferrell!

    PHOTOS: Laught It Up With These Shots Of Will Ferrell

    "This is a crazy and maybe even a stupid idea," Ferrell joked of his new gig. "IFC is either really courageous or really stupid which makes them the perfect partner for us."

    IFC - which has earned a rapidly growing comedy fan base with shows like Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein's "Portlandia" and Scott Aukerman's "Comedy Bang! Bang!" - has ordered six half-hour episodes of the show (produced by both Ferrell and "Step Brothers," "Anchorman" director Adam McKay, penned by "Saturday Night Live" alum Andrew Steele and directed by Matt Piedmont), set to premiere in late 2013.

    VIEW THE PHOTOS: The Many Faces Of Funnyman Ben Stiller

    Additionally, Ben Stiller is also heading to IFC - as a producer.

    PHOTOS: The Many Faces Of Ben Stiller

    VIEW THE PHOTOS: Casey Wilson

    The network has greenlit 10 half-hour episodes of "The Birthday Boys," a new, scripted, original sketch comedy show produced by Stiller and Bob Odenkirk (a former "SNL" scribe and writer on Stiller's "The Ben Stiller Show"), which will feature The Birthday Boys - a comedy group of Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre Los Angeles fame.

    "The Birthday Boys are too good to just be making viral videos. They are funny enough to fill time between episodes of 'Portlandia,'" Stiller said. "I'm thrilled to be working with Bob Odenkirk again on a TV project. We try to do something every 20 years or so."

    PHOTOS: Funny Ladies! The Glorious Women Of TV Comedy

    Odenkirk added, "The Birthday Boys are a super funny and fresh new comic voice. I will try not to slow them down."

    The Birthday Boys comedy group includes Jefferson Dutton, Dave Ferguson, Mike Hanford, Tim Kalpakis, Matt Kowalick, Mike Mitchell and Chris VanArtsdalen.

    -- Erin O'Sullivan

    Copyright 2013 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.
    This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    Loading...

    More Entertainment News

     

    News for You »

    • Boyfriend espaces out window as husband confronts cheating wife [VIDEO]

      As part of perhaps the most spectacular walk-of-shame ever, an underwear-clad lover escaped from a third floor bedroom as the returning husband confronted his cheating wife on a balcony.

    • File: Josh Powell had affair before wife vanished

      WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (AP) — Newly released police files say Josh Powell had an affair with a Utah woman just months before his wife disappeared.

    • Kids rescued from rubble at Okla. elementary

      MOORE, Okla. (AP) — Several children have been pulled out of the rubble alive at a school in an Oklahoma City suburb.

    • BREAKING: Subway Just as Unhealthy as McDonald’s!

      If you watched the London Olympics last summer, you saw a parade of top athletes touting the nutritional qualities of their favorite eatery: Subway. Watching Apolo Ohno or Robert Griffin III bite into a veggie footlong with avocado or hearing that Subway is “the official training restaurant of athletes everywhere,” you might get the idea that the food served at the chain isn’t that bad for you—that it’s even healthy.

    • Rescues, Grim Recoveries at Elementary School After the OK Tornado

      There's a reason that many eyes were on Plaza Towers Elementary as Moore, Oklahoma began to assess the damage from a deadly, devastating tornado that blasted through the town Monday evening and killed at least 51 people: the school was leveled, with dozens of children still inside. And so far, some of the most emotionally charged news has emerged from the story unfolding there. 

    • Soccer-Del Bosque defends benched birthday boy Casillas

      MADRID, May 20 (Reuters) - Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has spoken out in defence of his captain Iker Casillas and confirmed that the Real Madrid goalkeeper will be part of the world and European champions' squad at next month's Confederations Cup in Brazil. Casillas has been warming the bench at Real since returning from a broken hand after he fell out with coach Jose Mourinho but Del Bosque said he had faith in his captain, who turned 32 on Monday, and he would be travelling to the warm-up tournament for next year's World Cup. ...

    • Nearly 19 Feet! Longest Burmese Python Captured in Florida

      Florida has a long list of problematic invasive species, from the vervet monkey to the lionfish, but the Burmese python might be the state's public enemy No. 1 — so much so that residents will hop out of their cars at night to catch one double the normal size.

    • Navy Dolphin Finds Rare 130-Year-Old Torpedo

      A Navy dolphin training to look for mines off the coast of San Diego found a museum-worthy 19th-century torpedo on the seafloor, military officials said.

    Show More
    Loading...

    Follow Yahoo! News