Amazon has rounded out its third season of TV show pilots with tennis-based 80s comedy Red Oaks from Ocean’s 11 producer Steven Soderbergh.
The show will debut later this year on Amazon Prime Instant Video and features a number of stars from the 1980s and 1990s including stars Dirty Dancing actress Jennifer Grey and Paul Reiser of Mad About You.
Red Oaks centres on a college student’s summer job as an assistant tennis pro at the Red Oaks Country Club in suburban New Jersey, played by Craig Roberts of indie hit Submarine, as he meets a cast of misfit co-workers and wealthy club members.
It’s billed as “equal parts hijinks and heartfelt”, written by Gregory Jacobs (The Knick) and Joe Gangemi (Eliza Graves), and directed by David Gordon Green (Eastbound & Down).
“To be able to collaborate with Steven, David and Greg, three of the most highly-regarded creators in Hollywood, is an absolute pleasure,” said Roy Price, director of Amazon Studios.
“Red Oaks brings together not only top-notch talent, but also a hilarious and wonderfully written script that we think our customers will enjoy seeing come to life later this year.”
The show will join four others hoping to make the cut when they are voted on by viewers, with successful shows made into full series. The other shows in the third pilot season include Really, The Cosmopolitans, Hand of God and Hysteria.
“Greg Jacobs told me this idea on the set of Behind the Candelabra and I told him it was great and that he should start working on it immediately,” said Steven Soderbergh.
“Then, while we were on the set of The Knick he gave me the script he wrote with Joe Gangemi and I said, ‘This is ready to go, let’s find a director.’ We very quickly agreed to approach David because the humor was sharp without being mean, and we felt he would understand and appreciate that.”
Image: Thore Siebrands/Flickr
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