Rebecca Front will star opposite Hugh Laurie in “Avenue 5,” HBO’s space comedy pilot from “Veep” creator Armando Iannucci.
Front will play Karen Kelly, a middle-aged American housewife, who boarded Avenue 5 using her sister’s non-transferable ticket. Strong-willed, articulate and likable, Karen finds herself becoming the voice of the passengers, enjoying her newfound power. Front previously starred on Iannucci’s mid-2000s BBC comedy, “The Thick of It.”
The project currently has a pilot commitment with backup scripts ordered. Not much is known about the comedy, with HBO only describing it as “a comedy set in the future, mostly in space.”
Laurie will play Ryan Clark, the charming and in-control American Captain of Avenue 5. The project is created and executive produced by Iannucci. Suzy Nakamura is the only other announced cast member. She’ll play Iris Kimura, Judd’s (the billionaire owner of the Avenue 5) right-hand-woman. Straight to the point, sharp and serious, Iris has a limited sense of humor. Iris is a fixer, there to work out what Judd wants, even if it’s not clear, and make sure it happens but doesn’t cause anyone or anything any harm.
Iannucci is best known for creating “Veep,” which garnered numerous Emmy awards for Louis-Dreyfus, helping her defeat the so-called “Seinfeld” curse. He departed the show after its fourth season. “Veep” will end its run on HBO next year.