Here’s hoping Lamorne Morris likes lasagna: The Emmy-winning actor and “New Girl” alum is set to voice Garfield the cat in a new 2D animated series in the works at Paramount+.
Inspired by the original comic strip by Jim Davis, the new “Garfield” series “features the chonky feline at his finest, with each episode featuring the pop culture icon’s signature sarcasm and hilarious lackadaisy,” per the official synopsis.
“Garfield” began life as a comic strip and then expanded into a vast empire that included a number of animated TV specials in the 1980s and a Saturday morning cartoon, “Garfield and Friends,” that debuted in 1988 and ran for seven seasons. More recently, “Garfield” has hit the big screen in a series of computer-animated movies, including 2024’s “The Garfield Movie,” with Chris Pratt voicing the titular cat.
Morris is best known to TV fans as loftmate Winston on the Fox sitcom “New Girl,” which wrapped up a seven-season run in 2018. He also won an Emmy in 2024 for playing state trooper Witt Farr in Season 5 of FX’s “Fargo.” His other TV credits include “Woke,” “Unstable,” and “Call Me Kat.”
In other casting news…
* Gillian Jacobs (“Community”) has joined the cast of the Hulu football comedy “Chad Powers” for the upcoming Season 2, Deadline reports. She’ll guest-star as Jerri Dougan, the sister of Colton Ryan’s Gerry who isn’t thrilled about Chad taking her brother’s spot on the team. Also joining the Season 2 cast in guest roles: Colin Woodell (“Pulse”), Carey O’Donnell, and Nate Varrone (“The Bear”).
* Jacki Weaver (“Yellowstone”) has joined David Boreanaz in the cast of NBC’s reboot of “The Rockford Files.” She’ll play Karma, “Rockford’s long-time trailer park neighbor,” who is described as “tough” as well as an “outspoken activist and think-tank analyst.”
* Fox’s “Baywatch” reboot has added newcomer Thaddeus LaGrone to its cast, according to Variety. He’ll play Brad, who “served two tours in an elite division of the Marines before returning back home to Venice Beach to care for his ailing father. Brad is fearless and incredibly strong, a one-man rescue machine.”