The new detective comedy from the creator of Brooklyn Nine-Nine has found its new authority figure in a legendary actor.
It was announced in January that Brooklyn Nine-Nine creator Dan Goor and executive producer Luke Del Tredici were developing a new NBC pilot. The project stars Jake Johnson, best known for playing Nick Miller on New Girl, as Mickey, a sharp but jaded former LAPD officer struggling to move on after a professional collapse that derailed his life three years ago.
Multi-time Emmy winner Keith David has been cast in the NBC pilot as Mickey’s boss, Garner Taggert. Running the Taggart PI Agency, along with his sons Mitch and Mickey as the main private investigators, Garner is described as a tough guy with somewhat old-fashioned views of the world.
Keith David as Captain Pacheco in a still from High Potential season 1 episode 11.Image via ABC
David is a prolific voice actor, winning Emmys for his narration work in Ken Burns’ documentaries. His other notable vocal performances include his run as President Curtis in Rick and Morty, as well as the fantasy animated series Gargoyles, and voicing The Cat in the fan-favorite animated film Coraline. On camera, some of his recent notable credits include guest roles and supporting performances in shows like Community, Greenleaf, The Lowdown, Duster, Abbott Elementary, and High Potential.
A veteran performer with more than 400 credits to his name and a Tony Award nominee for his supporting turn in Jelly’s Last Jam, David is the second actor cast in the untitled NBC pilot. He’ll soon reprise his role as President Andre Curtis for the Rick and Morty spinoff, which is set to premiere later this year.
Akiva Schaffer, the director behind 2025’s The Naked Gun and Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, will helm the NBC pilot and serve as an executive producer. A two-time Emmy winner for his work on SNL and I Think You Should Leave, Schaffer previously directed the Brooklyn Nine-Nine season 1 finale as well as the episode “The Puzzle Master.”
The pilot is a half-hour workplace comedy set in the world of private detectives. It continues the proud tradition of Los Angeles private eyes that began with Philip Marlowe, the seminal character created by author Raymond Chandler, though this show teases that it may very well end that proud tradition.
The private detective comedy is part of NBC’s slate of pilots, also including dramas led by David Boreanaz, Emily Deschanel, and Peter Krause. A pilot means that network executives can still decide to pass on a project. But with the cast and crew involved, this follow-up to the consistently hilarious Brooklyn Nine-Nine sounds like it’s the most promising.