Paul Walter Hauser Has 'Fantastic' Week With Two Castings In As Many Days
Oh he’s definitely in-demand. It’s exploding time.
There’s no getting more in-demand than this. Coming off of Emmy, Critics Choice and Golden Globe wins for his turn as serial killer Larry Hall in Apple TV+’s Black Bird, Paul Walter Hauser has been reported to have booked two roles this week, in consecutive days, and landed a distributor for a third starring role.
On Wednesday it was reported that he will be joining the cast of Paramount’s The Naked Gun reboot as Captain Ed Hocken, played previously by Alan North in the original Police Squad! series and George Kennedy in the subsequent trilogy of films. He is Det. Frank Drebin (played by Liam Neeson here)’s boss. Pamela Anderson and Kevin Durand also star in the film, currently set for release on July 18, 2025, directed and executive produced by Akiva Schaffer of The Lonely Island, who co-wrote the draft script with Dan Gregor and Doug Mand. That continues a relationship begun with Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers. It’s from Fuzzy Door Productions, Seth MacFarlane’s production company, and thus he and Erica Huggins serve as producers.
Thursday, it was reported he has joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a role in The Fantastic Four, though said role was undisclosed This means he’ll be joining a cast that includes Pedro Pascal as Mr. Fantastic Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm the Invisible Woman, Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm the Human Torch and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm the Thing with Julia Garner as Shalla-Bal, a Silver Surfer.
However it all started Tuesday, April 30, when New Line acquired the biopic A Chris Farley Story which stars Hauser as the beloved comedian, Tommy Boy actor and Saturday Night Live alum. It’s the directorial debut for Josh Gad, known for The Book of Mormon, Frozen, and Gutenberg!, and based on the book The Chris Farley Show by Farley’s brother Tom Farley Jr. and Tanner Colby. It will be adapted by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, whose credits include The Disaster Artist, The Fault in Our Stars and (500) Days of Summer. Lorne Michaels and Erin David produce through their company Broadway Video. Telling the story of someone considered one of the great comic actors of his generation, it goes through his start during a renaissance period for the already long-running sketch comedy series, an era that would spark friendships with the likes of Adam Sandler and David Spade. His physicality was a major highlight of his comedy, and he translated that into a film career with Tommy Boy, Black Sheep, Beverly Hills Ninja, and originally Shrek, but drug and alcohol abuse and relapses ultimately led to an fatal overdose in 1997 at the age of 33.
As for closer-by upcoming projects, the Orion and the Dark star has another major voice role as Embarrassment in Pixar’s Inside Out 2, which will be released on June 14, as well as Americana with Sydney Sweeney, finally finding Lionsgate as a distributor after its SXSW premiere last year, and Doug Liman’s Apple Original film The Instigators with Matt Damon.
