James Corden in Talks to Lead Broadway Revival of A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM

James Corden may soon be returning to the Great White Way.

The Tony winner is currently in talks to lead a Broadway revival of A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, a spokesperson for the producers of the planned show confirmed to The New York Times this afternoon. ROCKY's Alex Timbers is also currently being courted to helm the production. Industry execs told The Times that deals with the pair looked "promising," and should they go through, performances could begin as early as Spring 2015.

Corden would take play Pseudolus, following in the footsteps of Nathan Lane, Zero Mostel, and Phil Silvers, who all took home Tony awards for their performances.

Corden's theatre work includes One Man, Two Guvnors (National Theatre) and The History Boys (National Theatre, Broadway and international tour), the West End's Martin Guerre in 1996 and Love Life at London Fringe in 1991. On TV he has appeared in The Brit Awards, A League of Their Own, and Gavin and Stacey (co-creator and co-writer), which won the BAFTA Award for Television Programme of the Year and British Comedy Award for Best New Scripted Comedy. Corden has also won the Writers Guild of Great Britain Award for Comedy Writer of the Year, South Bank Show Award for Comedy, Tric Award for Best Comedy and the National Television Award 2010 for Best Comedy. He will next appear in the big screen film adaptation of Into the Woods.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. Inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus (251-183 BC), specifically Pseudolus, Miles Gloriosus and Mostellaria, the musical tells the bawdy story of a slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by helping his young master woo the girl next door. The plot displays many classic elements of farce, including puns, the slamming of doors, cases of mistaken identity (frequently involving characters disguising themselves as one another), and satirical comments on social class. The title derives from the line that vaudeville comedians often used to begin a story: "A funny thing happened on the way to the theater".

The musical's original 1962 Broadway run won several Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Book. A Funny Thing has enjoyed several Broadway and West End revivals and was made into a successful film starring the original lead of the musical, Zero Mostel. The most recent Broadway revival starred Nathan Lane, who won the 1996 Tony Award for his performance.