‘This Is Us’ Chris Sullivan To Headline ABC Comedy Pilot ‘The Son In Law’

EXCLUSIVE: This Is Us star Chris Sullivan has been tapped as the lead of ABC’s single-camera comedy pilot The Son in Law, from 20th Century Television.

As is always the case with a hugely popular broadcast series coming to an end, the cast of NBC’s This Is Us has been in demand this development cycle. Sullivan is the second actor to sign on for a pilot, joining Milo Ventimiglia, who headlines ABC drama The Company You Keep, a project he’d developed through his company DiVide Pictures. Both The Son in Law and The Company You Keep come from This Is Us studio 20th Television, which is an ABC corporate sibling.

ABC also went after another This Is Us star for the lead in a pilot, but things did not work out in that case. Meanwhile, Justin Hartley is attached to CBS’ The Never Game, which has a pilot production commitment and remains in consideration for the off-cycle after scheduling issues ruled it out of regular pilot season, while Mandy Moore is next going on a concert tour that had been delayed by the pandemic.

2022 ABC Pilots & Series Orders

In single-camera comedy The Son In Law, written and executive produced by Ajay Sahgal and executive produced by Jake Kasdan and Melvin Mar, a salt-of-the-earth man, Jake (Sullivan), finds himself seeking the approval of his new fiancée Asha’s sophisticated parents, even as he is a difficult-to-impress father-in-law to his daughter’s longtime boyfriend.

For his role as Toby on This Is Us, Sullivan has earned two Emmy nominations in the category of Best Supporting Actor in a Television Drama category. He also starred in the HBO series Camping, and his other television credits include Marvel’s What If…?, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Good Fight, Stranger Things, and The Knick.

In features, Sullivan is known for his role as Taserface in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. He recently starred in the short film Hammer Down. Sullivan, who also writes music and plays with his band, Joseph and the Spouse, is repped by Suskin/Karshan Management and Hansen Jacobson Teller.