John Hamburg is best known for writing and directing comedies (he’s the man behind both Focker films and Along Came Polly), so it comes as no surprise that his next film will be laugh-worthy. But he’s taking a slightly different tack this time around.
Universal has grabbed his new script, Troubleshooter. It’s not, as you might expect, based on the tubby business whizz Sir John Harvey Jones who used to tell companies how to increase their profits and make their staff happier. It’s actually a comic thriller, which will see a mild-mannered TV installation grunt who, after a case of mistaken identity, has to go on the hop from a pair of trained killers. Though honestly, seeing Harvey-Jones on the run from trained killers is starting to sound awfully appealing.
Still, the whole “mild-mannered mistaken for something they’re not” has been mined for plenty of rich comedy potential in the past. Just look at The Big Lebowski. But please, for your own sake, don’t look at The Man Who Knew Too Little. You’ll regret it.
