Jerry O'Connell Could Return To CBS In A Comedy About Parenthood

A recent rewatch of Piranha reminded me of just how much I adore Jerry O’Connell. Sure, he’s often referenced as having once been “the fat kid from Stand By Me,” but let’s face it. He hasn’t been that adorable, fairly wimpy, chubby kid with the comb in a long time. In fact, seeing him on screen often prompts me to state, “Trip McNeely!” in my most Mike-Dextery voice. (Sometimes I whisper "Sliders"... it depends on my mood.) From a Slider, to a douchy high school grad, and more recently, a soft-core pornographer, O’Connell’s roles have varied over the course of his career, and if things work out for this CBS comedy, he could be playing a new dad at some point in the near future.

According to Deadline, CBS bought a multi-camera family sitcom, which will star O’Connell and focus on new parenthood. The series is apparently somewhat inspired by Adam Mansbach’s “Go the F**k To Sleep,” which is a humorous bedtime story meant to appeal to parents (with a sense of humor). O’Connell and Mansbach were teamed up by 3Arts and eventually put in touch with The New Adventures of Old Christine’s Jeff Astrof to work with them on developing a pilot.

Astrof and Mansbach will co-write the script for the pilot, which is described as “an adult family sitcom about a struggling writer catapulted into the spotlight as a parenting expert after his tongue-in-cheek children’s book becomes an unexpected hit.”

Come to think of it, the profane title of the book on which (from the sound of it) this project is loosely based, added to inspired-by-a-true-story angle is somewhat reminiscent of another CBS comedy. S**t My Dad Says, which only lasted a season on CBS, was based on a Twitter feed. That comedy starred William Shatner, who, much like O’Connell, is associated with numerous roles, including a notable sci-fi role.

Should this project end up going to series, it will put O’Connell back on CBS in a starring role. The actor starred alongside James Belushi in the short-lived legal dramedy The Defenders. If it does get picked up, hopefully this series has better luck than The Defenders and a less annoying-to-spell title than $h*! My Dad Says. (In other words, please don't title it Go the $u*! to Sleep, or Go the Stuff to Sleep.)