Jason Clarke is suiting up for the HBO drama pilot Showtime. The one-hour series focuses on the professional and personal lives of the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers. Clarke has been cast as Jerry West.
West first joined the Lakers as a player in 1960, being named an All-Star in all of his 14 seasons with the team before retiring in 1974. He was then named head coach in 1976, a position he held for three seasons. He went on to become a scout and then general manager in 1982.
Clarke’s West is described as the cantankerous tortured genius of basketball. West ought to be the perfect man to build the Lakers into a dynasty, if only he can get past his own worst enemy: Jerry West.
Clarke will also appear in the upcoming HBO miniseries “Catherine the Great” opposite Helen Mirren. His other recent credits include the films First Man, Mudbound, Chappaquiddick, Terminator Genisys, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. He is also known for his role in the critically-acclaimed film Zero Dark Thirty. On the TV side, Clarke has starred in shows like The Chicago Code and Brotherhood.
Max Borenstein is writing and executive producing the pilot, which is set to begin production in September. Adam McKay will direct the pilot and executive produce through his yet to be named new production company. Kevin Messick of McKay’s company will also executive produce along with Jason Shuman. Jim Hecht co-wrote the story and will also executive produce.
The pilot is based on Jeff Pearlman’s non-fiction book Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s.
