Chris Tucker may still end up doing David O. Russell's The Silver Lining's Playbook, but if he was planning a two-pronged movie comeback, he's going to have to look for a second project. While it was rumored that Tucker would have a role in Akiva Schaffer's Neighborhood Watch, apparently he's lost out to a competitor.
Variety has learned that Richard Ayoade, best known for playing the weird, anti-social Moss on the hit British show The IT Crowd and directing the Sundance hit Submarine, has signed on to the Fox comedy. Written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the plot is about a group of men who start a fake neighborhood watch association so that they can have some time away from their wives and families. This plan backfires, however, when the group discovers a plot that could put the whole world in danger. Ayoade will play Jamarcus, a divorcé who hangs out with the other men. The project also stars Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Jonah Hill, Rosemarie DeWitt and Nicholas Braun.
Anybody who has seen The IT Crowd (if you haven't it's on Netflix Instant) or Man To Man With Dean Learner knows that this is absolutely awesome. Ayoade is hilarious and should mix in well with the rest of the rest of the cast. Also worth noting, when Chris Tucker was rumored for the part, the report said that it was a "key role" in the script. Could this be Ayoade's big chance to break out in the US? Fingers crossed that it is.
