Broadway star and notorious narcissist Richard Bean (Kline) suffers a spectacular public meltdown and returns to his hometown and the family-run theater where he first became aware of his own brilliance. When he arrives, he is shocked to discover that his father, the former artistic director, has lost a step and that the once-respected theater, now run by his brother Jon (Tenney), and his wife (now the town's mayor) has become, by necessity, a low-rent dinner theater serving roast beef and murder mysteries. He decides to save the town, the theater, and the world by presenting a great American classic on the dinner theater stage, directed by and starring, of course, Richard Bean.
Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin created the comedy. They will executive produce with Kline, Ellen Fairey, Leslie Urdang, Anthony Bregman, Miriam Mintz, David Levine and Garrett Kemble. Tenney will co-executive produce, while Kevin Cotter will be a co-producer. Fifth Season, Mar-Key Pictures, Likely Story and Anonymous Content will produce.
"MGM+ is television for movie lovers - classic Hollywood storytelling through a contemporary lens," said Michael Wright, Head of MGM+. "American Classic, with its sophisticated wit, adult characters, and unique cast, is an exciting addition to that brand. In the capable hands of Michael Hoffman and Bob Martin, alongside stage and screen legend Kevin Kline, American Classic is a hilariously funny and deeply poignant comedy, and we can't wait to share it with our MGM+ audience."
"The two of us have been shaped from childhood by our love of the theater and those magical creatures that inhabit it: true actors," added Hoffman and Martin. "To get to tell a story with new friends and longtime collaborators, among them that grand man of the theater, Kevin Kline (who happens also to be one of the world's supreme comic talents), and a story about art, community, and family... for us, that's about as good as it gets."
