A new comedy series from “Modern Family” producers Christopher Lloyd and Danny Zucker got the green light at Fox, based on a British comedy with a wild concept.
“Mammoth” follows Coach Tony Mammoth, a larger-than-life high school gym teacher whose life is put on ice in 1983, when he’s buried in a freak ski avalanche.
“Forty years later, he thaws out to a world that has completely changed … but he’s convinced it really didn’t need to,” the logline states. “Still clinging to life in the ‘80s — complete with his Burt Reynolds moustache and treasured Trans-AM — Mammoth returns to the job he loves, only to discover that today’s rules, relationships, and realities bear little resemblance to the world he once knew.”
The series, which will debut during the 2027-28 season, is based on the original BBC Studios U.K. production of the same name and created by Welsh comedian and writer Mike Bubbins.
“Tony Mammoth genuinely believes he mastered manhood the first time around, making his new reality the ultimate wakeup call and greatest challenge in an otherwise flawless life,” Lloyd said in a statement. “He’s charming, wildly self-assured, hopelessly out of step and, despite his many blind spots, impossible not to root for.”
“Tony gets the second chance so many people wish for, only to find that his bravado doesn’t quite match his new reality,” Zuker added. “We love his shameless confidence, his fascination with a world he barely recognizes, and the big heart underneath it all. He’s a lot. We can’t wait to bring him to FOX.”
“Mammoth” marks Lloyd’s return to Fox almost two decades after he co-created and executive produced the network’s 2007 sitcom “Back To You” starring Patricia Heaton and Kelsey Grammer.
He reunites with Zuker after their collaboration across the 11-season run of the ABC sitcom “Modern Family,” where Lloyd served as co-creator and EP, while Zuker was writer and EP. Before that, Lloyd was EP and showrunner of “Frasier.”
In addition to Lloyd and Zuker, who serve as co-writers, showrunners and executive producers, Bubbins and BBC Studios Los Angeles’ Mark Linsey and Angie Stephenson serve as EPs. Fox Entertainment Studios serves as a producer, while Fox Entertainment Global is the distributor.
“The world moved on. Tony Mammoth didn’t,” Fox Television Network President Michael Thorn said. “That’s an incredibly funny premise, but what Christopher and Danny have developed is so much richer: a wildly original comedy with huge laughs, deep heart, and characters everyone will relate to, whether they like it or not. I look forward to apologizing on Tony’s behalf for years to come.”
