Take a look at these two. Now say it with me: "Awwwww." (OK, maybe you didn't say "Awww." Maybe you drooled a little, or sighed loudly. Or if you're a straight dude, you might have just rolled your eyes.)
But seriously. Jon Hamm and Paul Rudd, you guys! They're both incredibly handsome, skilled at both drama and comedy, successful in their careers ...
And they're longtime friends.
So answer me this: WHY in the name of all that is holy are they not also costars? We at the HSB dare to imagine the awesomeness of a Hamm and Rudd double bill:
Scenario #1: Drama
Noble, upright Hamm discovers his coworker Rudd is a smarmy businessman with a corrupt streak. Or Rudd's wife runs away with Hamm and Rudd loses his mind. Or the two men are brothers dealing with the sickness/disappearance/death of a family member. It's super intense any way you imagine it.*
*And preferably involves suits. Lots of suits. And possibly the occasional fedora. What? Period pieces really work for Jon Hamm.
Scenario #2: Comedy
None of these ideas are exactly new, but I think Rudd and Hamm could breathe life into almost any cliche. I'd love to see them as embarrassingly oblivious aspiring actors in their 40s (think of the late, great Party Down, of which Rudd was, not coincidentally, a co-creator); or as a pair of charming con men forced to work together; or as bumbling secret agents a la Get Smart**; or as, like, incredibly lame rival motivational speakers (or substitute your choice of ridiculous professions); or even as classic odd-couple partners on the police force (it's easy to imagine Rudd as the goofball and Hamm as the intense, serious straight man, but it would be just as entertaining were the roles reversed).
**Hello, tuxedos!
Scenario #3: Romance
Granted, given the lack of diversity in mainstream Hollywood, this would have to be in an indie movie, but neither Hamm nor Rudd is a stranger to small films. Rudd played a gay man convincingly - and sympathetically - in the forgotten 1998 Jennifer Aniston vehicle The Object Of My Affection. One of Hamm's earliest films was his girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt's quirky sexuality-questioning Kissing Jessica Stein, which seems to indicate that he, too, is comfortable with more than just standard Hollywood romance. And their long history as friends, as well as the charisma each man brings to the table, could make theirs a believable and intriguing romance onscreen.
Think about it. Hamm and Rudd. Rudd and Hamm. Hollywood (say it with me now), let's get on this!
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