What’s in a name? Well apparently in Netflix’s opinion having the same name might bring a bit of luck to casting decisions, because The League vet Paul Scheer has been cast as a fellow Paul in Netflix’s upcoming National Lampoon movie. Paul Shaffer will be portrayed by the younger, but still bald, Scheer in David Wain’s A Futile and Stupid Gesture, which starts filming in a scant few days. This casting follows announcements of Will Forte as Doug Kenney, one of the founders of National Lampoon, as well as Star Wars: The Force Awakens‘ Domnhall Gleeson as co-founder Henry Beard; Joel McHale as Chevy Chase; John Gemberling as John Belushi (another name pair!); and Thomas Lennon as former Saturday Night Live Head Writer Michael O’Donoghue.
The latest casting announcement also announced that Seth Green would be portraying Christopher Guest, who’s possibly one of the most famous alums from an incredibly stacked group. Of course, the movie probably won’t be all laughs. Doug Kenney died under “accidental” circumstances in Hawaii at the age of 33 after inexplicably receiving negative reviews of the Caddyshack script (who would dare!). Michael O’Donoghue passed away suddenly from a cerebral hemorrhage in 1994 after years of success at SNL. And Belushi, most famously of all, died from a massive drug overdose at the Chateau Marmont after years of battling his addictions. Even with all the tragedy that has befallen the National Lampoon founders and alumni over the years, the movie will have its fair share of humor as well. With a cast this jam-packed with comedy greats, how can it not?
(via The Wrap)
