Last season, NBC lost two of its veteran comedy series - 30 Rock and The Office. Now, the network is trying to recapture that magic by handing out a straight-to-series order to an untitled comedy project written by 30 Rock executive producers/showrunners Tina Fey and Robert Carlock and starring The Office regular Ellie Kemper.
The New York-based single-camera series will center on a woman (Kemper) who escapes from a doomsday cult and starts life over in New York City. Universal Television and Fey's studio-based Little Stranger are producing with Fey, Carlock and 3 Arts Entertainment's David Miner executive producing.
"Tina and Robert, who cemented their partnership on 30 Rock, have created a new signature comedy for us that is audacious, emotional, and clever," said NBC Entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt. "While tapping into very relatable themes, there isn't anything like this anywhere else on television. NBC has been their home for many years and we're happy that they've found another way to push the comedy envelope for us."
Entertainment president Jennifer Salke added, "Original voices like Tina and Robert don't come along very often and we wanted them back on the air as soon as possible. And to have them working with Ellie Kemper - who we watched grow up on The Office from supporting player to leading actress - puts the whole package together. We feel fortunate to be in business with this entire creative team on something so funny, unique and attention-getting."
"We have been lucky enough to work at NBC for our entire careers (except when Robert worked at The Dana Carvey Show, now available on DVD) and we thank Bob and Jen for their continued support," said Fey and Carlock.