Once, when the hit medical drama House was nearing its end, there was a point when actor Hugh Laurie made the then-startling claim that he would be quitting acting for TV, saying he'd be more focused on movies and behind-the-scenes television work. However, the past year has seen Laurie making multiple jaunts to the small screen, and he'll soon be back at the head of his own show, or at least sort of soon. Hulu announced his new psychological thriller Chance will premiere the first of ten episodes on Wednesday, October 19.
Considering how well know Hugh Laurie is within the comedy genre, having been a part of some of the best British comedies of all time, it's always exciting when the actor takes on more dramatic material. And Chance sounds rather unlike anything he's done before, minus the medical jargon. Laurie will star as forensic neuropsychiatrist Dr. Eldon Chance, who is dragged against his better wishes into an extremely dangerous world of corrupt cops, mistaken identities and mental illness. Not exactly what the show's San Francisco setting automatically brings to mind, but it could make for a nice juxtaposition.
Adhering to the weekly release model that worked well for Hulu's first scripted dramas 11.22.63 and The Path, Chance boasts a strong supporting cast to keep Laurie on his still-limping toes. Gretchen Mol will co-lead as Jaclyn Blackstone, the abused wife of a detective (Paul Adelstein), and her possible dissociative identity disorder causes big problems for the titular doc. Ethan Suplee stars as the street-smart D, who brings his own talents to the story, which threatens to dismantle the very particular life that Eldon Chance has created for himself.
Chance was created by Desperate Housewives and Bates Motel writer/director Alexandra Cunningham and author Kem Nunn, who wrote the novel that the show is based on. Nunn's got some TV experience, too, having written episodes of Deadwood, Sons of Anarchy and John from Cincinnati.
Hugh Laurie made my brain, along with many others, explode by choosing his first post-House TV role to be that of a crowd-pleasing politician on HBO's genius comedy Veep. And then he signed on for another drool-worthy role opposite Tom Hiddleston for the acclaimed AMC miniseries The Night Manager. By the time Chance has wrapped up in time for the new year, Hugh Laurie will be one of TV's biggest MVPs of 2016.
Hulu also announced premiere dates for several other shows, according to Deadline. The Mindy Project will kick off Season 5 on Tuesday, October 4. Jeffrey Donovan and Charlie Haverford's psychic scammer drama Shut Eye will bow on Wednesday, December 7, while the horror series Freakish received an unspecified October debut timeframe.
So, we now know when Chance is coming, but still without any idea of what it will look like or what the tone will be. Here's hoping we get a trailer soon.
