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SlashFilm has some news regarding Frank Darabont's upcoming TNT show. Darabont leaving The Walking Dead may have been loathed by many at the time, but when we see how epic his new TV show looks they might be singing a different tune. Based on John Buntin's book, L.A. Noir: The Struggle For The Soul Of America’s Most Seductive City. Originally titled L.A. Noir, the show has now had to change its name due to the Rockstar Video Game titled L.A. Noire.
Now titled Lost Angels, the show will cover some of the same history covered by Gangster Squad. In addition to the name change, it looks like Simon Pegg will appear in a small role. Darabont recently spoke to io9 about the name change and Pegg's role in the show.
It was going to be called L.A. Noir, based on the book by John Buntin. But the video game company with the video game called L.A. Noire (with an e!) threatened to sue the s— out of me, TNT, every company that actually ever worked in Hollywood. And they have the billions of dollars to back it up, apparently. So we’re changing the title, and I do believe the title is going to be Lost Angels.
Here is what he had to say about Pegg's role in the show:
He plays a stand up comic in 1947. It’s not a funny role. It’s a serious role. He’s laying down a dramatic performance in a flawless, American dialect of the era… People who are Simon Pegg fans will be blown away by what he has done in this.
Below is the pilot's plot description:
Lost Angels stars Jon Bernthal as Joe Teague, an ex-Marine now working as an LAPD cop in an era rampant with police corruption. Jeffrey DeMunn plays Detective Hal Morrison, who heads the LAPD’s new mob squad, with Jeremy Strong as Detective Mike Hendry, Morrison’s second in command. Neal McDonough is Capt. William Parker, Teague’s boss who is determined to weed out corruption and bring down Cohen. And Milo Ventimiglia plays Ned Stax, who fought alongside Teague during World War II but who now works as a lawyer with connections to the mob. The project also co-stars Ron Rifkin playing Los Angeles Mayor Fletcher Bowron, who makes it his mission to clean up corruption in city government; Pihla Viitala as Anya, the head bartender at Bunny’s on Central Avenue, the West Coast center of the black jazz scene; and Alexa Davalos as Jasmine, a beautiful woman whose past has come back to haunt her.
