NBC Scoop: Dane Cook Comedy Next Caller Drops Cast Member
The new NBC comedy Next Caller has made a call of its own, by letting go one of its original cast members.
TVLine has learned that Wolé Parks (photo, second from left) isn’t moving forward with the Dane Cook-fronted comedy, in what sources call a “creative decision.”
Parks, whose previous credits include As the World Turns and Law & Order appearances, played Keith Calhoun in the single-camera sitcom, which follows a feminist public radio host (Cougar Town’s Collette Wolfe) as she starts her dream job at a New York-based satellite radio station. Said gig becomes a nightmare when she realizes her new co-host (Cook) is an abrasive, sexist boor.
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Jeffrey Tambor (Arrested Development) plays Cook’s boss, and Ryan Devlin (Brothers & Sisters, Cougar Town) guest-stars as the shock jock’s nemesis.
Post-pickup cast changes aren’t unusual, as creative teams and networks figure out which combination of characters and players works best for new shows. There is no word yet on whether Caller will recast the character of Keith or cut it altogether.
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Next Caller is set to debut midseason, along with the other new NBC sitcoms 1600 Penn (featuring Book of Mormon‘s Josh Gad as an out-of-control First Son) and Save Me (starring Anne Heche).
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