Fox Lands New Pilot From TOOTSIE Team Robert Horn and Scott Ellis

Robert Horn and Scott Ellis, the duo behind Tootsie on Broadway, have created a pilot that Fox has officially landed, according to Deadline.

Fox has handed a put pilot commitment to Football Book Club, after multiple bidders competed for the pilot.

The pilot was written by Horn and will be directed by Ellis. Football Book Club is inspired by the experiences of former New England Patriots wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell.

The series is a comedy, which follows professional football wide receiver Lawrence Lasalle, who suffers a career-threatening injury forcing him on the sidelines. A trip to an Athens, Georgia bookshop leads him to becoming the only male in an all-female Southern book club, started by recent widow Nancy Leverett. Unexpected relationships form as the two opposite lives collide at a time of major transition for both.

The plot mirrors Mitchell's story while he was a star University of Georgia football player. After college, he was drafted by the New England Patriots, but soon after winning the Super Bowl, Mitchell was sidelined with a knee injury, ultimately forcing him to retire this past spring at the age of 25.

Football Book Club will be executive produced by Horn and Ells alongside Mitchell, Kaplan and Dana Honor of Kapital Entertainment, Jeff Holland, Stan Spry and Drew Brown of The Cartel. WBTV co-produces with Fox Entertainment.

Read more on Deadline.

Horn and Ellis recently teamed up on the Broadway adaptation of Tootsie. Horn wrote the book and Ellis directed the musical, which earned 11 Tony nominations earlier this year, including Book of a Musical for Horn and Direction of a Musical for Ellis. Horn won a Tony for the book, alongside Santino Fontana who won the Tony for Best Leading Actor in a Musical.