Emmy and Tony Winner Ellen Barkin to Guest Star on Showtime's HAPPYISH

Emmy and Tony Award winner and Golden Globe nominee Ellen Barkin will guest star in the Showtime comedy pilot HAPPYISH, playing "Dani Kirschenbloom," a headhunter who works closely with Thom Payne (Steve Coogan). Dani harbors no illusions about the advertising industry, or life, and is best described as the sardonic prophet-philosopher of the project.

HAPPYISH is a scathing examination of our pursuit of happiness, a pursuit that might just be the very thing causing our unhappiness in the first place. The new half-hour pilot will be filmed in New York next month, with Oscar and Golden Globe nominee Steve Coogan (Philomena, Alan Partridge), acclaimed actress Kathryn Hahn (Revolutionary Road, We're The Millers) and Emmy Award winner and Golden Globe nominee Bradley Whitford (The West Wing) previously announced to star.

A renowned actress of the stage, and small and big screens, Barkin has starred in countless feature films including Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, This Boy's Life, Sea of Love, Brooklyn's Finest, She Hate Me, Women Had Wings, Someone Like You..., Drop Dead Gorgeous, Switch, The Big Easy and Ocean's Thirteen. Her television credits include THE NEW NORMAL and Modern Family. Barkin was honored with a Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play in 2011 for her role as "Dr. Emma Brookner" in THE NORMAL HEART on Broadway.

HAPPYISH was created, written and executive produced by critically acclaimed author and regular This American Life contributor Shalom Auslander. Emmy Award nominee Ken Kwapis (He's Just Not That Into You, A Walk In The Woods) will executive produce and direct the pilot. Kwapis' producing partner Alexandra Beattie will co-executive produce, under their In Cahoots banner.

Auslander added: "Ellen Barkin? Are you kidding me? Ellen F*cking Barkin, holy sh*t!"

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME, THE MOVIE CHANNEL and FLIX, as well as the multiplex channels Showtime 2, Showtime SHOWCASE, Showtime EXTREME, Showtime BEYOND, Showtime NEXT, Showtime WOMEN, Showtime FAMILY ZONE and THE MOVIE CHANNEL XTRA. SNI also offers Showtime HD, THE MOVIE CHANNEL HD, Showtime ON DEMAND, FLIX ON DEMAND and THE MOVIE CHANNEL ON DEMAND, and the network's authentication service Showtime ANYTIME. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution, which offers Smithsonian Channel. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a Pay-Per-View basis through Showtime PPV.

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