Amazon Greenlights ‘Budding Prospects’ Pot Comedy Pilot Starring Will Sasso

Amazon s joining the hot trend of marijuana-themed shows with Budding Prospect, a 1980s comedy from Bad Santa director Terry Zwigoff, which has tapped Will Sasso as one of the leads.

Written by Melissa Axelrod based on the TC Boyle novel of the same name and to be directed by Zwigoff, Budding Prospect is set in 1983 San Francisco. Three hapless city boys move to the country to grow marijuana. Their expectations of the experience being a back-to-the-land, nurturing adventure in a beautiful rustic setting run up against the harsh truth upon their arrival at “The Summer Camp” – a miserably run-down shanty out in the middle of nowhere, where they are bedeviled by rats, snakes, mosquitoes, and harsh, unfriendly growing conditions, noisy neighbors, dangerous locals, and menacing law enforcement.

Sasso will play one of the three leads, Gesh, a big, unruly guy who is smarter than he seems.

Zwigoff and Axelrod executive produce with Vincent Landay. Joanna Colbert is co-executive produce.

MadTV alum Sasso, repped by D2 Management, APA, and attorney Jonathan Moonves, is filming Super Trooper 2. 

Budding Prospects is looking to join several pot-themed scripted comedy series, HBO’s High Maintenance, Netflix’s upcoming Chuck Lorre sitcom Disjointed, and  MTV’s Mary + Jane.

Amazon’s current pilot slate includes I Love Dick, which is nearing a series pickup, Jean-Claude Van Johnson, The Tick, and The Legend of Master Legend.