Vanity Fair has released the first official photos from the Hulu limited series Welcome to Chippendales, starring Kumail Nanjiani. The show billed as a “true crime epic,” will follow the story of Somen Banerjee, the man responsible for establishing Chippendales, a firm that employs male exotic dancers. Nanjiani will play Banerjee, while the rest of the cast includes Murray Bartlett, Annaleigh Ashford, Dan Stevens, Andrew Rannells, and Juliette Lewis. Vanity Fair published a total of six images from the forthcoming TV movie. Photos show Nanjiani, Lewis, and Bartlett in character, decked out in full 1980s clothing and clearly having a blast, but we know from experience that this good time won’t last very long.
Images from what seems to be Welcome to Chippendales suggest a classic period piece that will appeal to those who enjoy well-known crime flicks from the past. The showrunners of the series are Robert Siegel and Jenni Konner. The show’s scriptwriters are Rajiv Joseph and Mehar Sethi, and director Matt Shakman. Directing credits for Shakman include episodes of WandaVision, Game of Thrones, and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. In addition to writing for and directing Welcome to Chippendales, Nanjiani and Siegel will serve as executive producers.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Nanjiani discussed his time on set, noting that his current role is more serious than any he has portrayed previously. When asked about the difficulties of his work, Nanjiani remarked, “This is by far the toughest job I’ve ever done, in terms of the duration of the shoot, the content of the sequences, and the emotional intensity of those situations. I took a leap of faith, figuring out the details as I went along, and they turned out to be correct. In continuation of his discussion of the physical toll of the event, the Eternals and The Big Sick actor said, “he’s a lot stiffer than I am—divorced he’s from his body, coiled incredibly tight. Several months into production, I began experiencing severe back discomfort from a particularly nasty knot in my spine. The agony intensified and eventually reached all the way to my ear. Although there is no confirmed official release date for Welcome to Chippendales just yet, the show is slated to make its Hulu debut sometime in 2023.