LATEST NEWS

Ed Helms Set to Visit 'Cedar Rapids' in the Ensemble Comedy

by Alex Billington
July 16, 2009

Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Population: 128,056. This is where Ed Helms will venture in his new indie project, titled Cedar Rapids. Helms will play a wholesome and naive small-town Wisconsin man, who, when his role model dies, must represent his company at a regional insurance conference in said city. But when he arrives there, his mind is blown by the big-town experience. THR has announced that former "Daily Show" correspondent Ed Helms will star in the ensemble road-trip comedy that Miguel Arteta (of the upcoming Youth in Revolt) is directing. Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor and Jim Burke are producing. Sounds great!

The screenplay for this was written by newcomer Phil Johnston, a broadcast journalist from the Midwest who moved to New York to attend film school at Columbia. Cedar Rapids is not setup at a studio yet, but it could end up at Fox Searchlight. I was originally going to say that Cedar Rapids could be Helms' chance to really break out, but I already realized that The Hangover has already done that. However, if this turns out as great as it sounds, it could be another solid breakout hit for Helms that will only continue to put him in the spotlight. I'm very curious to see who else joins the cast, as this is an ensemble comedy. Stay tuned!

Tweet

Explore tags: Casting, Movie News