He’s probably the nicest guy in Hollywood, but Steve Carell’s very niceness seems to work against him sometimes. He was way too nice to be a Noah in Evan Almighty, and even his diabolical mastermind turned out to love fluffy stuffed animals and small children in Despicable Me. Now Carell is about to get even nicer, by teaming up with the studio that has made niceness into a brand name.
The Film Stage tells us that Disney has expressed interest in Carell for a part in a new comedy by writer Martin Hynes. The film is based on a recent New York Times article by Suzanne Daley about a Spanish village that won $950 million in the lottery … except for one ill-fated house.
So will Steve Carell be taking on a role in the as yet untitled film? The truth is we don’t know. He’s got quite a line up for the coming year, including Despicable Me 2, Bennett Miller’s Foxcatcher, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash’s The Way, and perhaps even Charlie Kaufman’s Frank or Francis. It’s only been a year since Carell left The Office – and we see how well that show’s done without him. He’s been in demand ever since, even beginning to approach that over-saturation factor that made Seth Rogen persona non grata for awhile.
To me, this lottery film sounds like an interesting premise that can either turn out to be very warm and fuzzy, as only Disney can make it, or milquetoast and too ‘family-friendly’; again as only Disney can make it. With Carell in a role, perhaps even in the lead, I might be persuaded to Netflix it. Then again, I felt the same way about Despicable Me and almost choked on the saccharine. Someday, I would love to see Steve Carell play a real jerk.
As always, we’ll keep on eye on this film and let you know if Steve Carell will in fact be losing out on the lottery. Until then, there’s plenty of him to go around.