One For The Money also stars Carey Mulligan

Tim Key and Tom Basden are to star in a new comedy film about an eccentric lottery winner who lives on a remote island.

The comedians will appear in One For The Money alongside Promising Young Woman Oscar nominee Carey Mulligan.

Basden wrote the script based on a 2007 short film called The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island, in which he starred  alongside Key. That was directed by James Griffiths, who will also be overseeing this project.

Key told industry website Deadline: ‘Shooting the short with Tom and James was one of the most fun things I've ever done, and I've been in love with that film ever since.

‘To get the chance to do it all again, and to go deeper is extremely exciting. And to have Carey Mulligan on the island with us is the icing on the cake.’

Basden added: ‘This film is a real labour of love for us that we've been hoping to return to for years. The mixture of laugh out loud comedy and emotional resonance that made the short such a hit with audiences over the years (including Carey!) is such a special and rare thing and we're so excited to reprise the characters we love so much and fulfil the promise of the original short film.’

Key will play the eccentric lottery winner, Charles, who  hires his favourite musician, Herb McGwyer (Basden)  to play an exclusive, private gig on his island. But unbeknownst to Herb, Charles has also hired Herb’s ex-band mate and ex-girlfriend, Nell, with her new husband in tow, to perform too – inflaming old tensions.

One For The Money is being developed by Steve Coogan's Baby Cow Productions, with Brian And Charles producer Rupert Majendie.

Basden and Key met at Cambridge University's Footlights club and were half of the comedy troupe Cowards in the mid 2000s.

The news comes on the day it was announced that Basden’s adaptation of The Accidental Death of an Anarchist is to transfer to the West End.

Here is the original short:

Published: 4 May 2023