Molly Shannon To Star In Vanessa Bayer’s Showtime Pilot ‘Big Deal’

Saturday Night Live alum Molly Shannon has signed on as a lead opposite another SNL veteran, Vanessa Bayer, in Bayer’s half-hour Showtime comedy pilot Big Deal.

Co-created and executive produced by Bayer and Jeremy Beiler (Saturday Night Live), Big Deal is a grounded comedy in which Bayer plays Joanna, a character inspired by her own past. Joanna overcame childhood leukemia to achieve her lifelong dream of landing a job as a successful home shopping channel host. Shannon will star as Jackie, the charismatic, popular host at the network.

Jessi Klein serves as showrunner and executive produce along with Michael Showalter, who will direct, as well as Annapurna’s Megan Ellison and Sue Naegle and Jordana Mollick of Semi-Formal. Showtime is the studio.

2020 Showtime Pilots & Series Orders

Shannon, who also was pursued for broadcast pilots this season, is known for her Emmy-nominated tenure on Saturday Night Live, along with Emmy-nominated performances in Will & Grace and Enlightened and roles in Wet Hot American Summer and Divorce. She also won a Film Independent Spirit Award for Other People. Shannon is in production on the second season of The Other Two. She has a major recurring role on the Comedy Central series, for which she garnered a Critics’ Choice Award nomination, and can be seen in Horse Girl opposite Alison Brie and the upcoming Promising Young Women with Carey Mulligan.

Shannon is repped by UTA, Framework Entertainment and Hansen Jacobson Teller.