Playing a US talk show host in a film from Mindy Kaling

A new movie starring Emma Thompson as a late-night US talk show is coming to Amazon Prime.

The streaming giant just snapped up the rights to Late Night for a reported £13million.

It is written by Mindy Kaling and inspired by her experiences as the only female writer of colour on NBC’s version of The Office.

Thompson plays Katherine Newbury, a British character on a major US network, described as  ‘something of a dinosaur  in the era of fratboy stand-up comedians and late-night talk show hosts who’ve embraced social media’

Kaling – who will also co-star– told Deadline the film is ‘about women helping other women; it’s about mentorship and how to become a mentor,’ adding: ‘It’s a great workplace comedy.

Late Night is directed by Nisha Gantra, whose credits include episodes of Transparent, Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Kaling’s The Mindy Project.

Kaling has also been working a TV series inspired by Four Weddings and a Funeral for rival streaming service Hulu, with a cast that includes Britain's Gus Khan alognside leads Nathalie Emmanuel, Brandon Mychal Smith, Rebecca Rittenhouse and John Reynolds.

The deal for Late Night was struck at the Sundance Film Festival.

Published: 27 Jan 2019