Adam Devine will reprise his role as Bumper in a straight-to-series comedy sequel to the Pitch Perfect film trilogy. Elizabeth Banks, who starred as half the announcing team in the features and directed the second one, will exec produce via her Brownstone Productions banner.
However will the TV series be the same without Rebel Wilson and Anna Kendrick. Unlike the three movies which grossed over $600m worldwide, and followed an all-female college cappella group, the TV series will see Bumper moving to Germany to revive his music career when one of his songs becomes big in Berlin. ‘Righteous Gemstones’ star Adam Devine says new HBO comedy “will get surprisingly dark”.
“Our upcoming Pitch Perfect series is another example of the unmatched synergy NBCUniversal is able to expand upon with our wide-ranging library of IP,” said Susan Rovner, chairman of entertainment content at NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. “When we saw the opportunity to create a series for Pitch Perfect with Elizabeth Banks, Max Handelman and Paul Brooks plus more earworm classics for super fans to enjoy, we jumped at it. And to top it off, we are so fortunate that Adam Devine is headlining the series and bringing fans the quirky, laugh-out-loud sensibility they loved in the film franchise.”
To Rovner’s point, Pitch Perfect becomes the latest Universal Pictures title to get the TV treatment, joining Field of Dreams and Ted, which hail from Mike Schur (The Good Place) and Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy), respectively. Other updates based on Universal film and TV titles are also in the works at Peacock, including Battlestar Galactica and Saved by the Bell, the latter of which was renewed for a second season. The strategy mirrors that of other upstart streamers, with HBO Max, Disney+ and Paramount+ all mining their deep vaults of IP in a bid to draw subscribers.
“We’re so happy to have the opportunity to bring the beloved Universal Pictures franchise Pitch Perfect to the small screen and to explore the hilarious and distinct characters in this (musical-filled) world,” said Erin Underhill, president of Universal Television, which produces the new Pitch Perfect series. “We’re lucky to partner with the talented Elizabeth Banks, Max Handelman and Paul Brooks, who produced the iconic films; the exceptionally funny and memorable Adam Devine; and Megan Amram, whose clever adaptation of Pitch Perfect is sure to have audiences laughing out loud and tapping their feet.”