‘Weird Al' Yankovic Inks Deal With Cartoon Network

Will develop and direct live action film for Turner network

By Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/25/2010 5:07:07 PM

Singer and comedian "Weird Al" Yankovic has signed a deal with Cartoon Network to develop a live action made for TV movie. Yankovic broke the news on his personal blog, and Cartoon Network confirmed it was developing a project with him to B&C.

"It needs to be fine-tuned a bit more and it hasn't been officially green-lit yet, but it's gotten some very positive buzz at the network," Yankovic wrote.

The protagonist of the film will be a teenager, with Yankovic having a supporting or guest role. Assuming it gets picked up, he would also direct the project, though the earliest it could shoot would be fall 2010, because of his tour schedule.

Cartoon Network has been making an aggressive push into live action fare. While it's live action series have been hit or miss, the network is hoping its live action scripted series can help give the network credibility and expand its presence in the genre. The films can also work as backdoor pilots, with series pickups possible depending on their success with viewers. For the most part the live action protagonists have been teens or tweens, as was the case with Cartoon's popular Ben 10 franchise.

Yankovic is no stranger to Turner, having appeared as "Uncle Muscles" on Adult Swim's Tim & Eric Awesome Show Great Job! He also wrote and starred in the film Al's Brain in 3D, as well as the 1989 film UHF.