Why Him will focus on a Midwestern dad whose family trip to see his college-aged daughter goes awry. When he meets her new tech-billionaire boyfriend, tension between them will turn into a fight for her affection. Given that it’s a comedy, it’s safe to say that hilarity will ensue as they face off. We assume that Cranston will play the dad and Franco the boyfriend, but their roles have not yet been officially announced.
Cranston is perhaps best known for playing Walter White on AMC’s Breaking Bad, which ran from 2008 to 2013. However, he’s also starred in numerous notable films, including The Lincoln Lawyer, Godzilla, and Saving Private Ryan. He’ll next appear in Trumbo, starring as once blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo. The biopic is set to open in theaters on Nov. 6. Following that, he’ll appear in his other project with Franco, In Dubious Battle. Based on a book by John Steinbeck, it focuses on an apple-picking strike in the 1930s.
Screenwriter John Hamburg collaborated with Ian Helfer on Why Him, which seems like a great fit considering that Hamburg also wrote Meet the Parents and Zoolander. In addition to co-writing, Hamburg will direct. He previously helmed I Love You Man and Along Came Polly.
Production on Why Him will kick off in Los Angeles in February, with Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps and Ben Stiller’s Red Hour producing. No release date has been announced.
