Emma Thompson has been cast as a veteran late-night comedy show host in a new movie written by and set to co-star Mindy Kaling, Variety reports. Kaling is also confirmed to produce alongside Scott Rudin and Howard Klein, who have begun to attract studio interest. Although the untitled film has yet to attach a director or studio, it’s expected that this major talent package will ignite a competitive bidding war in the coming weeks.
In the film, Kaling will play a newly hired writer on Thompson’s writing staff. The only woman in the writer’s room, she promptly—and inadvertently—puts Thompson in danger of losing her long-running, well-regarded series. And if that’s not enough to get you excited for this upcoming project, sources are reportedly describing the film as “The Devil Wears Prada meets Broadcast News.” Two of the smartest and wittiest multihyphenates in Hollywood sending up the media industry’s treatment of women? Now there’s a premise worth getting behind.
