Straight-up comedies have struggled to find a foothold in theaters since the pandemic, but after last weekend’s encouraging “The Naked Gun” launch and this weekend’s promising “Freakier Friday” prospect, it looks like studios are ready to invest in comedy all over again.
Variety has shared that Kristen Wiig — the “SNL” alum who powered one of the ’10s most successful laughers, “Bridesmaids” — will co-star with Jonah Hill as siblings in the upcoming Warner Bros. release “Cut Off.”
The pair will play adult siblings forced to adjust to real life after their parents stop paying for them. Ezra Woods co-wrote with Hill, who will also direct. “Cut Off” will hit theaters on July 17, 2026, placing it as counter programming to “The Odyssey,” which — of course — already has sold out advance IMAX screenings for that date, 11.5 months ahead of its actual release.
Wiig will return to live action features for the first time since 2021’s “A Boy Called Christmas” with “Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie,” an adaptation of the Netflix children’s series set for release on September 26 from Universal. Wiig hasn’t had a big movie comedy since the acclaimed “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” which was set for a 2020 release before the pandemic scuttled those plans.
Meanwhile, Wiig has been busy on television, starring in the Apple TV+ series “Palm Royale,” which earned her a Best Actress Emmy nomination in 2024. That show — which co-stars Allison Janney, Laura Dern, Ricky Martin, Leslie Bibb, Josh Lucas, Amber Chardae Robinson, and the legendary Carol Burnett — has been renewed for a second season. When that one comes back, it might pair together even more funny people, as Burnett has signaled she wants her longtime comedic partner Vicki Lawrence added to the cast.
“I wish they could find something for [Vicki] on the show,” Burnett told IndieWire last year. “I’m going to ask Abe if there’s a part that might come up because that would be fun to have Vicki on. That would really be something. And not just a mercy booking. That’s not what I mean. But if there’s a role that she could sink her teeth into, because she is a very good actress.”
As for Hill, he’s been characteristically busy, as well, but largely behind the scenes. As a producer, he’s had “Y2K,” as well as the series “Sausage Party: Foodtopia,” “The Mortician,” and “Overcompensating.” He’s got another movie — as actor, writer (with Woods), and director — in the works, “Outcome,” set for release by Apple TV+ at a yet to be determined date. That film will also star Keanu Reeves, Matt Bomer, Cameron Diaz, David Spade, and Laverne Cox.
