Proving to be a master at many things, Aziz Ansari will now be making his filmmaking debut via a Searchlight Pictures feature. Ansari will stand at the helm of the yet-to-be named comedy-drama as director, star, producer, and writer. He will be joined in front of the camera by legendary performer, Bill Murray, who has signed on to co-star. Searchlight’s Taylor Friedman and Cameron Chidsey will oversee with Youree Henley joining Ansari to produce.

Based on the non-fiction book, Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, the film will tell the true story behind the life of the novel’s author, Atul Gawande. While the film’s plot is being kept under wraps, as well as information surrounding the characters that Murray and Ansari will be portraying, we can take some guesses plot-wise from the basis of the book. A #1 New York Times bestseller, the novel follows Gawande on his journey of helping patients through the healing powers of medicine. Throughout the pages, Gawande takes readers through his thoughts based around hospice and end-of-life help for those in need as well as his belief that medicine should be used to uphold a patient’s health and ease those who are terminally ill into their passing.

Known for his iconic role as the energetic entrepreneur Tom Haverford on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, Ansari is proving to be a man of many talents. Following his time on Parks and Recreation, Ansari created, starred in, and executive produced the hit Netflix series, Master of None. So far, the series has run for three seasons with the latest hitting the streamer back in May 2021. Not only did the show receive praise from critics, but it also earned Ansari several accolades in the ceremony circuit including three Emmy Awards and one Golden Globe Award. Currently, fans can catch a laugh from the quadruple threat in his Netflix special, Aziz Ansari: Nightclub Comedian.

Adding to the announcement of the new film, David Greenbaum and Matthew Greenfield, the co-Presidents of Searchlight, released a joint statement sharing their excitement to begin working with Ansari, calling him “an incredible talent.” Continuing on, the duo praised the creative’s writing skills saying that he was able to weave the story with both “insightful humor and pathos.” Rounding out their statement, Greenbaum and Greenfield commented on looking forward to “working with the genius Bill Murray once again.” In the past, Murray has teamed up with the company on several films from The Darjeeling Limited to the more recent, The French Dispatch.

While nothing more is known about the feature at this time, we do know that production is aiming for a 2023 release.

via Collider