If you are not already familiar with the goddess in human form that is Allison Janney, you should really go buy yourself some West Wing box sets immediately, or seek out 10 Things I Hate About You or Juno. If you already worship at her altar, well done you, and rejoice and be glad! The artist formerly known as CJ Cregg signed up to join Sam Mendes' This Must Be The Place and the Eddie Murphy comedy A Thousand Words, making the latter in particular a heck of a lot more appealing in the process.
This Must Be The Place will see Janney play a brash, brassy, very un-PC woman who "has a few screws loose". She's the former employer of Maya Rudolph's expectant mother who, together with her husband (John Krasinski) sets off on a tour around America to find the perfect place to raise their child. Toni Collette and Cheryl Hines are also signed on for what promises to be an interesting change of pace for Mendes, especially after his rather heavy upcoming drama Revolutionary Road.
A Thousand Words, meanwhile, is the story of a fast-talking guy (Eddie Murphy) who leans he only has 1,000 words left to say before he dies. Janney plays his "savvy, money-grubbing" boss at the literary agency where he works. It's directed by Murphy's current go-to director Brian Robbins, who also worked on the upcoming Starship Dave and, er, Norbit. Oh dear.
In the meantime, Janney's all set to star in Dolly Parton's Broadway adaptation of '9 To 5' (yay!), and you can see her on DVD in **Juno **in a couple of months, rocking some very ornate jumpers.