SNL Alum Molly Shannon Signs On As Star In New Pilot Big Deal

Reported first by UPI, Molly Shannon recently announced she was signing up for Showtime’s half-hour comedy show, Big Deal, which was revealed as a pilot earlier this year. Vannessa Bayer, who is also a Saturday Night Live alum, will executive produce the pilot.

The showrunner will be Jessi Klein, who has worked on series such as Inside Amy Schumer and also the popular animated show, Big Mouth. Michael Showalter, who worked on Wet Hot American Summer and The Big Sick, will direct.

Reportedly, the series is about Bayer’s struggle with childhood leukemia. Shannon and Bayer will both star as hosts for a successful shopping channel. Molly Shannon, the SNL alum, is most known for her work in the film, Superstar, that came out in 1999 and starred herself and Will Ferrell.

The film, produced on a budget of just $14 million, was a modest box office success, earning $30.6 million, but also becoming somewhat of a cult classic in the process, despite the negative reviews at the time, including from Roger Ebert for the Chicago Sun-Times.

While Molly Shannon found success on Saturday Night Live, her career slowly moved into films and other television shows, many of which were supporting roles.

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So excited!!!!! Link in bio! @vanessabayer and I are #clevelandgirls too for those of you who don’t know. @jeremybeiler #mikeshowalter #jessiklein @showtime @david_nevins @andreanevins @annapurnapics @cbstv @cheeksieg #amyisrael #suenaegle @deadline #nellieandreeva @variety @hollywoodreporter #joeotterson @megan_e_ellison @jordanamollick

A post shared by Molly Shannon (@theofficialsuperstar) on Feb 25, 2020 at 9:37am PST

Three years ago in 2017, for instance, Molly took home the Film Independent Spirit Award for her work in Other People. The actress won Best Supporting Actress.

She has also appeared in other films including the critically acclaimed film, Happiness, but also other SNL movies such as A Night At The Roxbury, in addition to films outside the SNL-universe like Never Been Kissed, Osmosis Jones, and How The Grinch Stole Christmas.

She worked with Will Ferrell again in Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. From 2012 until 2018, she found work in Adam Sandler’s film series, Hotel Transylvania.

She was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award back in 2018 for her guest role in Will and Grace, which was rebooted in 2017, following its original success in the late 1990s to early 2000s.

source https://celebrityinsider.org/snl-alum-molly-shannon-signs-on-as-star-in-new-pilot-big-deal-373798/