SNL's Taram Killam to Lead New Showtime Comedy Pilot MATING

Showtime has ordered a new half-hour comedy project entitled MATING (working title), executive produced by Jason Katims (Friday Night Lights, Parenthood), and written and executive produced by Stu Zicherman (The Affair, The Americans). Taran Killam (Saturday Night Live) has been cast in the lead role. The comedy anthology pilot will center on a recently divorced guy who married young and now finds himself completely unprepared for the brave new, frank and fluid world of dating and hooking up. The project, produced by SHOWTIME, Universal TV and True Jack Productions, is an "annual anthology" as each season will focus on a different protagonist's journey through modern dating and relationships. Michelle Lee will also serve as an executive producer. The announcement was made by David Nevins, President and CEO, Showtime Networks Inc. at the 2016 Television Critics Association's Summer Press Tour.

Taran Killam is best known to audiences for his six seasons on Saturday Night Live. Killam established his comedy career in Los Angeles as a main company member of the Groundlings, performing with numerous improv and sketch groups, and also appearing in the Groundlings' Sunday Company. Additionally, he appeared in the show "Three Compañeros" at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. His additional television credits include New Girl, How I Met Your Mother, Community, Drunk History, Comedy Bang Bang, MADTV and Scrubs. He also voices the character of Frantic in the original animated series The Awesomes. His feature-film work includes the Academy Award®-winning film 12 Years a Slave, The Heat, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Underdogs, Grown Ups 2, Ted 2, My Best Friend's Girl, Big Fat Liar, Just Married, and Epic Movie. He can also be seen in the upcoming film Brother Nature, and in the independent Why We're Killing Gunther opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger, which Killam also wrote and directed. In 2013, Killam released "The Illegitimates," a comic book miniseries focused on a team of illegitimate children tasked with replacing their father, a James Bond-esque super-spy.

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