BRITISH COMEDIAN MATT LUCAS SIGNED TO CO-STAR IN
COMEDY CENTRAL'S FIRST FANTASY-COMEDY SERIES
"KROD MANDOON AND THE FLAMING SWORD OF FIRE"
India De Beaufort, Steve Speirs, Kevin Hart, John Rhys-Davies, James Murray
And Marques Ray Mascarinas Round Out Ensemble Cast
Currently Shooting In Budapest, Hungary And Scheduled To Premiere In Spring 2009
Sean Maguire Previously Announced To Star
NEW YORK, October 15, 2008 -- British comedic icon Matt Lucas ("Little Britain") is set to join Sean Maguire ("Meet the Spartans") and the talented ensemble cast of COMEDY CENTRAL's epic new series "Krod Mandoon and The Flaming Sword of Fire," the all-comedy network's first foray into fantasy-comedy. Currently in production in Budapest, Hungary, the series is set to premiere in Spring 2009.
India de Beaufort ("Run, Fatboy, Run"), Steve Speirs ("Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"), Kevin Hart ("Fool's Gold"), Emmy® Award-nominated John Rhys-Davies ("The Lord of the Rings"), James Murray ("Primeval") and Marques Ray ("Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'N Out") round out this exceptional ensemble cast.
"After a long and extensive search, we are thrilled to lock in the perfect cast for this unique series that is best described as 'Monty Python' meets 'The Princess Bride,'" said Lauren Corrao, president, original programming and development, COMEDY CENTRAL. "The talented actors each bring their distinctive voices to these well-crafted, hilarious characters who inhabit the world that is Krod Mandoon."
"Krod Mandoon and The Flaming Sword of Fire" is a groundbreaking action-comedy that is equal parts workplace comedy and sword and sorcery fun. An outrageous, live-action, character-driven show set in an ancient fantasy realm, the series follows reluctant hero Krod Mandoon (Maguire), a thin-skinned and underconfident freedom fighter, who is the last great hope in the struggle against the evil ruler, Chancellor Dongalor (Lucas). To help fight the great fight, Krod has assembled a band of remarkably ineffective freedom fighters: Aneka (de Beaufort), the beautiful Pagan warrioress whose weapon of choice is sex, Loquasto (Speirs), the oafish servant with bad aim, Zezelryck (Hart), the young warlock whose greatest magical gift is spinning BS, and Bruce (Ray), who's simply fabulous. Together, they must overcome a myriad of evil obstacles in their quest to save the world, including name-calling, hired assassins and bad hair days.
One of the UK's most influential comedic forces, Lucas first made his debut on the London stand-up comedy circuit in 1992 in character as Sir Bernard Chumley. From there, he teamed up with David Walliams to co-write "Bernard Chumley and Friends," a show that gained a cult following in the three years it ran at the Edinburgh Festival. Lucas' early television appearances include "The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer," "Shooting Stars," "Casanova" and "Wind In The Willows." The funnyman's most triumphant success was when he partnered with Walliams to create and star in the Sony Award-winning radio show "Little Britain," which later became a highly successful BBC television series. The series and cast have garnered countless honors, including three BAFTA TV Awards, five British Comedy Awards, an International Emmy® Award, numerous National Television Awards and a People's Choice Award, to name just a few. Recently, Lucas' infectious laugh empire has hopped the pond to shock and double over Americans with the HBO series "Little Britain USA."
"Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire" is a co-production between COMEDY CENTRAL, Media Rights Capital, Hat Trick Productions and BBC Television. The series is created by Peter Knight ("Big Wolf on Campus"), written and produced by Knight and Brad Johnson ("Unhitched"), directed by Alex Hardcastle ("Lead Balloon") and produced by Mario Stylianides ("Fonejacker"). Knight, Johnson, Jimmy Mulville ("Worst Week") and Stylianides serve as executive producers. Scott Landsman is the executive in charge of production for COMEDY CENTRAL.
COMEDY CENTRAL, the only all-comedy network, currently is seen in more than 95 million homes nationwide. COMEDY CENTRAL is owned by, and is a registered trademark of, Comedy Partners, a wholly-owned division of Viacom Inc.'s (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B) MTV Networks. COMEDY CENTRAL's Internet address is www.comedycentral.com. For up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs visit Press Central, COMEDY CENTRAL's press web site at www.comedycentral.com/press.
MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world’s leading creators of entertainment content, with brands that engage and connect diverse audiences across television, online, mobile, games, virtual worlds and consumer products. The company’s portfolio spans more than 150 television channels and 350 digital media properties worldwide, and includes MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, Harmonix, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Noggin, The N, AddictingGames, Neopets, COMEDY CENTRAL, Spike TV, TV Land, Atom, Gametrailers and Xfire.
