While the film still doesn’t appear to have a confirmed title (Variety calls it untitled; other sources tag it as The Heat), the new Sandra Bullock / Melissa McCarthy cop comedy is gathering a cast. Tony Hale is the latest to jump aboard.
The film, originally written by Parks & Recreation scribe Kate Dippold and now getting a polish from Office duo Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg, finds an FBI agent teaming up with a Boston police officer to track down a Russian mobster.
Hale, who might still be best known as Buster Bluth from Arrested Development, has been recruited to play a man that McCarthy ends up arresting when he tries to procure the services of a prostitute. We’re not sure if that means he’ll just pop up for a quick gag, but we’re hoping it indicates he’ll stick around to provide bumbling laughs.
Given Hale’s history with director Paul Feig – Feig directed episodes of Arrested Development and cast the actor in his airport comedy Grounded: Unaccompanied Minors – we have reason to hope that Feig's using the comic talent for more than just a throwaway joke.
Tony Hale can currently be seen in Sky Atlantic’s Veep and will be back as Buster for the new, Netflix-sponsored run of Arrested Development, which should be filming this year.