Better Call Saul may be done, but Bob Odenkirk is returning to AMC very soon.
AMC Networks announced today that Lucky Hank will debut across four of its linear networks, with BBC AMERICA, IFC, and SundanceTV joining AMC and AMC+ for a multi-network premiere event on Sunday, March 19 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Lucky Hank is a mid-life crisis tale set at Railton College, told in the first person by William Henry “Hank” Devereaux, Jr. (Odenkirk, Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad), the unlikely chairman of the English department in a badly underfunded college in a working-class American town.
Hank’s discontent is rooted in unresolved issues with his father, a mediocre and entitled student body, and in the fact that his department is more savagely divided than the Balkans.
Mireille Enos (Hanna, The Killing) stars as Lily Devereaux, the emotionally grounded, unflappable wife of Hank and the Vice Principal of the local high school in rural Pennsylvania where they live.
As Hank’s life starts to unravel, Lily begins to question the path she’s on and the choices she’s made.
Additional series regulars include (alphabetically): Sara Amini, Diedrich Bader, Suzanne Cryer, Olivia Scott Welch, and Cedric Yarbrough.
Lucky Hank Season 1 guest stars include Alvina August, Tom Bower, Shannon DeVido, Chris Diamantopoulos, Lilah Fitzgerald, Jackson Kelly, Arthur Keng, Kyle Maclachlan, Oscar Nuñez, and more.
Aaron Zelman and Paul Lieberstein, who adapted the project from the novel “Straight Man” by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Russo, serve as co-showrunners as well as executive producers.
Odenkirk also executive produces, Peter Farrelly, who also serves as director, Mark Johnson, Russo, Naomi Odenkirk, Marc Provissiero, and Jessica Held.
The series is produced by AMC Studios with partners Sony Pictures’ Television TriStar TV and Johnson’s Gran Via.
The official trailer is certainly a change of pace for Odenkirk, who is coming off his playing Saul Goodman on Better Call Saul, which wrapped last year.
Odenkirk originally played that role in Breaking Bad, so it seems the actor was ready for a different kind of role to sink his teeth into.
AMC was fast about keeping the actor working with them by giving this show a series order.
It’s been a fast process, and the first trailer certainly looks promising.
Take a look at the trailer below and let us know what you think in the comments!
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.
