Crime has come to Metropolis. Sort of. HBO Max has given a straight-to-series order for the eight-episode, half-hour comedy series The People V. Gorilla Grodd, a “true crime” style mockumentary hosted by Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) as he looks into the murder trial of the century featuring the superintelligent ape of the title (played by Jimmy Tatro.
“Between Skyler’s wonderful performance and the fantastic chemistry of the Daily Planet cast, we knew coming out of ‘Superman’ that this would be a fun world to explore,” James Gunn and Peter Safran, executive producers and DC Studios’ Co-Chairmen & Co-CEOs, said via press release. “We’re excited to work with the brilliant Dan Perrault and Tony Yacenda to take the audience down some of the darker and funnier streets and alleyways of the DCU as Jimmy spotlights the Metropolis criminal justice system for his docuseries.”
Added Amy Gravitt, Executive Vice President, HBO Programming, Head of HBO & HBO Max Comedy Series, “We are thrilled to be working with Tony and Dan, alongside James, Peter, the entire DC team and our colleagues at WBTV, to bring these iconic DCU characters to HBO Max in a new and unexpected way. We already know Skyler Gisondo is pitch-perfect as Jimmy Olsen and we can’t wait for fans to experience Jimmy Tatro’s captivating and hilarious portrayal of Grodd.”
As noted above, the show comes from Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault, who previously created American Vandal for Netflix which helped rocket Tatro to fame. And this seems like it’ll be similar, as “A superintelligent ape is convicted of murdering his father, the King of Gorilla City. In an eight-part ‘true’ crime docuseries, the Daily Planet’s Jimmy Olsen reopens the case, investigating whether Gorilla Grodd was wrongly convicted in one of Metropolis’ most famous murder trials.”
Gisondo’s Olsen will be far from the only Superman actor to appear in the series. Also joining the cast are Beck Bennett as Steve Lombard, Mikaela Hoover as Cat Grant, and Wendell Pierce as Perry White. In addition, new characters will be played by Mary Holland, Eduardo Franco, Arian Moayed, Dan Perrault, Andrew Leeds, and Tim Baltz.
“We’re excited by the challenge of creating a series that feels less like an entry into the DCU and more like an artifact from it. A Daily Planet original documentary made for the people of Metropolis,” Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault, showrunners, writers, and executive producers, said. “We hope it’ll appeal to fans of the comics, comedy and true crime. And while we can’t speak for audiences here yet, we already know it’s a huge hit in Metropolis. They love this series.”
In addition to the above quotes, HBO Max also sent over a “newspaper” announcement from The Daily Planet which reads:
The Daily Planet announced today it will begin production on an eight-part documentary series that will dive back into Metropolis’ most infamous murder trial.
The People v. Gorilla Grodd will take a fresh, 360-degree look at the case, revealing a “lesser-seen side” of the hyperintelligent ape, according to the film’s first-time director Jimmy Olsen. Olsen was granted unprecedented exclusive access to interview Grodd inside Stryker’s Island Penitentiary for the documentary.
Gorilla Grodd has long claimed his innocence in the murder and brain consumption of his father, King Grodd – a crime he was convicted of in March 2021 and has remained incarcerated for ever since. The series will take an in-depth look at the inves-tigation, featuring brand new reporting from members of the Daily Planet staff, as well as interviews with witnesses and experts on both Grodd’s and the Metropolis District Attorney’s side of the case, including Gorilla Grodd’s new counsel at the Metropolis Freedom Project.
“Everyone thinks they know Grodd: the power-hungry gorilla who killed his father for the throne of Gorilla City,” said Perry White, managing editor of the Daily Planet and the documentary’s supervising producer. “But once you start to look beneath the fur, you start to realize there’s a lot more to that primate.”
Director: Jimmy Olsen
Supervising Producer: Perry White
Producers: Steve Lombard and Cat Grant
“The Voice of Metropolis”
The Daily Planet has been “The Voice of Metropolis” since its founding, bringing the essential stories of Metropolis to its citizens and the globe. In addition to its flagship daily newspaper, The Daily Planet operates an industry-leading interactive presence that includes videos, documenta-ries, podcasts, newsletters, word game apps, recommendation sites and banner ads.
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