After exploding on Comedy Central with their sketch series Key & Peele, Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele are heading to the big screen for their first joint film project, titled Keanu.
The movie, centering on two friends who masquerade as drug dealers to infiltrate the criminal underworld in hopes of retrieving a purloined cat (the Keanu of the title), won out over a Police Academy reboot, a Judd Apatow flick and a spinoff of Mr. Garvey, aka Substitute Teacher, as the duo’s first big-screen starring vehicle.
Though the pair co-starred in FX’s Fargo and have had separate gigs in films like The LEGO Movie and Let’s Be Cops (Key) and Wanderlust and Little Fockers (Peele), Keanu will serve as their first joint film.
Peele and Alex Rubens, who has written for Key & Peele and also Community, handled script-writing duties. Said Peele:
“The movie should resonate with a large audience as almost everyone has had a house pet stolen by a street gang, right?”
Peter Atencio, who has sat behind the camera on every episode of Key & Peele, is in talks with New Line to direct. The plan is get shooting under way in Los Angeles by next April once the supporting cast is rounded out.
New Line President of Production Richard Brener admitted that Key and Peele had to be persuaded to do the project at a studio instead of independently, stating:
“We were happy that they were open to doing it at a studio, particularly ours. Everything they do is funny.”
As a big fan of Key & Peele, I’d have to agree with Brener there. If the pair can bring the same energy and comedic timing to Keanu that they provide on every episode of that incredible sketch series, we’re in for an absolutely hilarious flick.
