Brendan O'Carroll turns down massive HBO offer

My name is URL

Comedian Brendan O'Carroll, star and creator of Mrs Brown's Boys, has turned down a "ridiculous" amount of money to take his show to the US.

The Star reports that O'Carroll turned down the offer of producing a special for the US network HBO, which is behind hits like Game of Thrones, The Sopranos and Entourage.

It's believed that HBO wanted the 56-year-old to produce a once-off special, with the option of stretching to a series if the show was well received.

O'Carroll said: "I've already been approached by HBO, initially a special with a commitment that if it pulls the numbers that we'll go ahead with a series."

Instead, the comedian wants to spend time with family, and said he cherishes the privileged position he is in.

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Now I'm no fan of the show, but wouldn't he have been wise to accept the offer for producing a one-off show and then seeing how things went from there? An offer like that from HBO is not to be sneezed at.

moe_sizlak

how this would translate across the atlantic is beyond me , perhaps they just want o carroll on board to produce an american version , i just cant see americans taking to a guy dressed as a middle aged matriarch

Dodge

If an offer like that came in, no body would turn it down. particularly not someone who has, in the past, suffered financially because of his business decisions

I can only deduce that no offer was on the table and O'Carroll's manager/agent is drumming up a bit of buzz

JonathanAnon

My name is URL wrote: »

Now I'm no fan of the show, but wouldn't he have been wise to accept the offer for producing a one-off show and then seeing how things went from there? An offer like that from HBO is not to be sneezed at.

Brendan is a clever guy, he must think that the show would travel across the Atlantic well... I cant imagine the yanks would take too kindly to all the bad language..

artful_codger

i don't believe this story at all. He's probably getting a lot of PFO letters and thought they were from HBO.

My name is URL

JonathanAnon wrote: »

Brendan is a clever guy, he must think that the show would travel across the Atlantic well... I cant imagine the yanks would take too kindly to all the bad language..

Curb Your Enthusiasm is far more colourful on the language front than Mrs. Brown's Boys!

HBO obviously saw potential in the show, somewhere. If it's true, (and perhaps it isn't) then it's a huge opportunity missed by O'Carroll and his team.

antoswords

artful_codger wrote: »

i don't believe this story at all. He's probably getting a lot of PFO letters and thought they were from HBO.

Hahahahahaha!

stimpson

Cough....cough...bullshit...cough...

amacachi

As someone else already said I'd find it hard to believe that someone who's been broke through a lack of work in the past would turn down an offer from HBO.

Technocentral

April 1 was Sunday, that crap wouldn't get a look in on a quality network like HBO.

Corkfeen

My name is URL wrote: »

Curb Your Enthusiasm is far more colourful on the language front than Mrs. Brown's Boys!

HBO obviously saw potential in the show, somewhere. If it's true, (and perhaps it isn't) then it's a huge opportunity missed by O'Carroll and his team.

But Curb is genius tv, that's the major difference.... Unless they were merely inviting Brendan over to appear as Mrs Brown in Curb your Enthuasiasm, only to have Larry suffocate him with sponge cakes out of annoyance..... I'd actually watch that.... :pac:

JohnK

moe_sizlak wrote: »

i just cant see americans taking to a guy dressed as a middle aged matriarch

You'd think so but dont forget:

• Big Momma's House
• Big Momma's House 2
• Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son

so its not as if its a completely new idea to the American audience. Someone over there likes this sorta stuff

My name is URL

There's a piece coming up on Newstalk discussing how/why Mrs. Brown's Boys is so popular in the UK where its viewership is over 8 million. Perhaps the HBO story will be mentioned.

Minstrel27

JonathanAnon wrote: »

Brendan is a clever guy, he must think that the show would travel across the Atlantic well... I cant imagine the yanks would take too kindly to all the bad language..

Bad language is common enough on channels like HBO

Biggins

If the story is true, I can understand why he might reject advances from them.

1. Why rock the boat with the current success he has presently?
2. Why upset current heads he's signed up to contractually? (Backlash?)
3. Why upset the current rate of income he's getting from first writing/publishing rights and then subsequent re-airing rights on other stations abroad?
3. Why rush off to an American station where they could just as quickly - oft times quicker - cancel a series/show in a flash!
4. This bit is VERY important to him as such:

...the comedian wants to spend time with family, and said he cherishes the privileged position he is in.

He obviously might feel rushing off to the USA might not necessarily make him any happier but instead make him very unhappy! He seems to be ok with what he's got and even more appreciates it in the understanding that while he is currently already making serious dosh, huger amounts won't make him any happier but might come at bigger (emotional) unwanted price to him!
5. Why rush over there when he might be a small fish in a big pond - whereas over here given his current success, he is still already, a bigger fish in a smaller pond!

stimpson

Not only is it bullshit, it's old bullshit

http://www.herald.ie/news/sex-and-city-tv-bosses-want-our-brendan-1986028.html

Brendan has also been commissioned to star in and write another BBC series of Mrs Brown's Boys, insisting on striking a deal which would see the series commissioned in association with RTE.

According to the Dubliner: "We've got the shooting of that series down to eight weeks so I'm hoping we'll be able to work around it so that I can also be in the States to work on the HBO one.

Looks like Brendan has been pedalling that for quite some time.

Sir Gallagher

Heard this earlier and it's definitely complete bollox. It makes no sense whatsoever.

plasmaguy

haha love these stories.

What next, RTE offer him twice what he's on, just to keep him from going to HBO.

The RTE "stars" have been doing this for years, threathening to leave for the States or the UK.