Mike Schur Comedy Starring Ted Danson Based On ‘The Mole Agent’ Docu

Ted Danson, 'The Mole Agent' and Mike Schur Getty/Everett/Courtesy

EXCLUSIVE: The Good Place creator Mike Schur has reunited with the hit comedy’s star Ted Danson for The Mole Agent, a new serialized comedy, which has hit the premium/streaming marketplace, sparking heated bidding, sources tell Deadline. The project is based on the 2020 Chilean feature documentary The Mole Agent and hails from Schur’s longtime studio home, Universal Television. I hear the networks/platforms pursuing the show include Netflix, Apple TV+, Prime Video and HBO/Max.

Written by Schur, The Mole Agent would star Danson as an older guy hired by a PI to go undercover at a nursing home, I hear. Schur and Denson are expected to executive produce with 3 Arts’ David Miner and Morgan Sackett. Universal TV had not comment.

The Mole Agent documentary, directed by Maite Alberdi, was screened at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and went on to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary Feature. It also was selected as the Chilean entry for Best International Feature Film, making the shortlist in the category.

In the docu, a PI, Rómulo, hires an elderly man, Sergio, to go undercover in a nursing home in El Monte, Chile to investigate a claim by the PI’s client that her mother had been mistreated by staff. While at the home, the man forges relationships with its residents and learns their secrets. (Watch a trailer below)

The Good Place, which ran for four seasons on NBC, has found a new, young audience on streaming where the high-concept comedy has excelled. It earned three Lead Actor In a Comedy Series Emmy nominations for Danson and two Comedy Series nominations. Danson has since headlined NBC’s comedy series The Mayor, which aired for two seasons, and continues to recur on HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm.

In addition to The Good Place, Schur co-created and executive produced Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parks & Recreations and, most recently Rutherford Falls, which ran on Peacock for two seasons. He, along with Miner and Sackett, also executive produce HBO Max’s award-winning comedy series Hacks.

Here is a trailer for The Mole Agent documentary: