EXCLUSIVE: Amazon MGM Studios’ Orion Pictures has landed rights to Howl, a horror comedy in which Kumail Nanjiani will make his directing debut and also star from a script by Madison Vanderberg. The film is in development and will be produced by Weed Road Pictures and Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon’s Winter Coat Films.
Howl follows a famous but notoriously troubled actor who announces on a talk show that in less than an hour, he’ll turn into a werewolf — on live TV. The script appeared on the 2024 Black List.
Weed Road Pictures’ Akiva Goldsman, Greg Lessans and Rachel Wizenberg, and Winter Coat Films’ Nanjiani, Gordon and Dani Melia, will produce. Wizenberg, a Weed Road SVP, brought in the project and will oversee for Weed Road.
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Nanjiani most recently debuted Night Thoughts, his first comedy special after his debut Beta Male 12 years ago. Night Thoughts bowed on Hulu in December 2025 and he received a Golden Globe nomination for it.
Nanjiani and his wife Gordon are adapting the comic book series Sex Criminals, working as co-creators as well as executive producers under their Winter Coat Films. The show has landed series order at Amazon MGM and is also being produced by LuckyChap. Winter Coat also has comedy film Compulsive Liar set at Amazon MGM, with Nanjiani co-writing and producing.
Nanjiani was recently cast in the fourth season of HBO’s The White Lotus. Additional series credits include a recurring role in Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building, the second season of Fallout for Amazon MGM, the second season of Peacock’s Poker Face, Hulu’s Welcome to Chippendales which earned him an Emmy nomination, and Silicon Valley. He will next be seen in The Wrong Girls for Neon, the FX series Very Young Frankenstein, Judd Apatow’s upcoming comedy feature The Comeback King and the sci-fi thriller Green Bank.
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Upcoming series for Weed Road include Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants and The Time Tunnel. Under his Weed Road banner, Goldsman has produced Deep Blue Sea, Constantine, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Hancock, Starsky and Hutch, Without Remorse, The Map of Tiny Perfect Things, Back to the Outback, Meet Cute and the upcoming Billion Dollar Spy.
Vanderberg is a former entertainment news and pop culture writer. She is currently writing the feature comedy Corporate Retreat for Netflix.
Goldsman is represented by CAA, TFC Management, and Hansen Jacobsen Teller. Nanjiani and Gordon are represented by UTA, Mosaic, and Schreck Rose. Vanderberg is represented by Verve, 3 Arts, and Gang, Tyre, Ramer & Brown.
