HBO Max is officially moving forward with their DC Studios mockumentary series, now titled “The People v. Gorilla Grodd.”
The show was first reported to be in the works in November 2025. As reported at the time, Skyler Gisondo will reprise the role of Jimmy Olsen, whom he first played in the 2025 “Superman” movie. Jimmy Tatro is officially set to play Gorilla Grodd.
HBO Max has given the show an eight-episode order.
The logline for the show states, “A superintelligent ape (Tatro) is convicted of murdering his father, the King of Gorilla City. In an eight-part ‘true’ crime docuseries, the Daily Planet’s Jimmy Olsen (Gisondo) reopens the case, investigating whether Gorilla Grodd was wrongly convicted in one of Metropolis’ most famous murder trials.”
Along with Gisondo and Tatro, the series will also star “Superman” actors Beck Bennett as Steve Lombard, Mikaela Hoover as Cat Grant, and Wendell Pierce as Perry White. Additional cast members include Mary Holland, Eduardo Franco, Arian Moayed, Andrew Leeds, and Tim Baltz.
Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault will serve as writers, executive producers, and showrunners on the series, with Perrault also set as part of the show’s cast. Yacenda will direct all eight episodes. James Gunn and Peter Safran also executive produce. DC Studios and Warner Bros. Television will produce.
“We’re excited by the challenge of creating a series that feels less like an entry into the DCU and more like an artifact from it,” Yacenda and Perrault said. “A Daily Planet original documentary made for the people of Metropolis. We hope it’ll appeal to fans of the comics, comedy and true crime. And while we can’t speak for audiences here yet, we already know it’s a huge hit in Metropolis. They love this series.”
Yacenda and Perrault are no strangers to the world of mockumentary series. The duo famously created the critically-acclaimed Netflix show “American Vandal,” which spoofed the true crime genre. The show aired for two seasons at the streamer and won a Peabody Award for its first season in addition to being nominated for an Emmy for best writing for a comedy series. Tatro and Franco both starred in the show’s first season.
Yacenda and Perrault then went on to create the Paramount+ mockumentary series “Players,” which was set in the world of eSports. They previously spoofed the sports world on projects like a parody of ESPN’s “30 for 30” series about the events of “Rocky IV” and “Angels in the Outfield” for CollegeHumor.
“We are thrilled to be working with Tony and Dan, alongside James, Peter, the entire DC team and our colleagues at WBTV, to bring these iconic DCU characters to HBO Max in a new and unexpected way,” said Amy Gravitt, executive vice president of HBO Programming and ead of HBO & HBO Max comedy series. “We already know Skyler Gisondo is pitch-perfect as Jimmy Olsen and we can’t wait for fans to experience Jimmy Tatro’s captivating and hilarious portrayal of Grodd.”
Gunn and Safran added, “Between Skyler’s wonderful performance and the fantastic chemistry of the Daily Planet cast, we knew coming out of ‘Superman’ that this would be a fun world to explore. We’re excited to work with the brilliant Dan Perrault and Tony Yacenda to take the audience down some of the darker and funnier streets and alleyways of the DCU as Jimmy spotlights the Metropolis criminal justice system for his docuseries.”
Gisondo is repped by UTA, Untitled Entertainment and Jackoway Austen. Tatro is repped by Brillstein Entertainment, UTA, Toczek Suddleson Law Group LLP and Luna Public Relations. Bennett is repped by UTA and Myman Greenspan. Hoover is repped by Buchwald, Untitled Entertainment, Brecheen Feldman Breimer Silver Thompson, and Birch Public Relations. Pierce is repped by Paradigm. Holland is repped by Atlas Artists, Paradigm Talent Agency, and Ziffren Brittenham. Franco is repped by Mosaic, UTA & Kovert Creative. Moayed is repped by UTA and Kipperman Management. Perrault is repped by Brillstein, UTA, and Narrative. Leeds is repped by Gersh, Perennial Entertainment, and Felker Toczek Suddleson McGinnis Ryan LLP. Baltz is repped by repped by El Centro Entertainment, Gersh, and Lichter-Grossman.
News of the series order comes less than a week after the premiere of “Lanterns,” another DC Studios show about Green Lanterns John Stewart and Hal Jordan. It was reported last week that two DC live-action projects — an Amanda Waller series and a “Wonder Woman” prequel set on Themyscira — are no longer in development.