Jon Hamm's 'Confess, Fletch' Reboot Adds Annie Mumolo And More
It looks like the Fletch reboot is still actually going to happen, and with a stellar cast. The reboot, helmed by Superbad director Greg Mottola, has announced the cast that will surround our new Fletch, Jon Hamm.
According to Collider, Hamm will be joined by Annie Mumolo (Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar), Lorenza Izzo (Knock Knock), and Ayden Mayeri (Homecoming).Update: In addition, The Hollywood Reporter is now reporting that Hamm's Mad Men co-star John Slattery has also joined the cast.Confess, Fletch isn't a remake of the 1985 Chevy Chase comedy. Instead, it's a reboot intended to hew more closely to the Fletch series of books by Gregory McDonald. (Specifically, the second novel in the series, which is also called Confess, Fletch.) Hamm will star as Irwin Maurice Fletcher, an investigative journalist who is willing to don disguises, forge documents, and get up to all kinds of trouble in order to get his story.
Mottola recently took to Twitter to share his excitement, along with the film's logo.
Here we go.#IrwinMauriceFletcher pic.twitter.com/lb5EnSpK8W
— greg mottola (@gregmottola) June 28, 2021
A Little Less Comedy, a Little More Noir
Fletch and its sequel, Fletch Lives, are both pretty straightforward comedies. The noir elements from McDonald's novels are present, though they're more like an additional flavor on top of Chase's cool-guy machismo schtick. Whether or not you enjoy the first two Fletch films is going to depend entirely on how much you enjoy Chase pretending to be cooler than everyone else. For those of us whose love of the man died with his character on Community, however, a new Fletch with a different lead might just work. Hamm, for one, seems optimistic.
"But as I've mentioned in previous conversations, it's a reboot, it's not a remake, so we're going back to the novels and really breaking it down but hopefully bringing what people want to see. So, fingers crossed!" he said in an interview with Collider last year.
Hamm is the perfect pick for a less-hammy Fletch. He has all of Chase's charisma and some serious acting chops. Fletch, as a character, has to be the kind of guy you believe can get away with anything. He has to be charming, handsome, and most of all, a little conniving. In Confess, Fletch, he will be declared the prime suspect in a murder investigation and must work to prove his innocence while also working a case very close to his heart.
Confess, Fletch is currently in production in Massachusetts. John Slattery (Mad Men), Marcia Gay Harden (Mystic River), Roy Wood Jr. (The Daily Show), and Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks: The Return) will also star.