Steve Carrell: Leading Man Extrodinaire

Hey guys, it's Donnie...After years toiling away on The Daily Show and numerous supporting roles in which he literally stole the show (Anchorman and Bruce Almighty come to mind immediately) Steve Carrell is about to secure his status as one of the next great leading men of comedy. His newest flick, The 40 Year Old Virgin, is about to hit theaters on Friday and I have literally not heard one bad thing about it. Everyone seems to laugh their coal mining ass off at this movie. Carrell's also currently filming the second season of the NBC version of The Office, which I haven't seen but although the feedback has been somewhat mixed, most agree that Carrell is one of the best things on the show, which is good because I can't stand Ricky Gervais on the British version. (sidenote: I don't really hate Ricky Gervais so much as David Brent is SO pathetic and clueless a character that I can't even remotely sympathize with him and whenever he comes onscreen I just want him to go away.)

Anyway, Carrell must be battling Will Ferrell for most projects in development, because he's got a whole slew of stuff on the horizon. Most notably we can look forward to hearing his voice talents in the animated version of Over The Hedge, a cinematic battle royale with woodland creatures over some prime real estate in Furry Vengeance and a new standard in secret agent-ness in the big screen adaptation of Get Smart. (My money is on this one, although it's still a long ways off.)

Well, Variety reports today that Carrell is now in talks to star in High T, a comedy about a guy who is forced to take testosterone shots for some medical reason. As a result, he finds himself at the mercy of intense mood swings, ranging from screaming to crying in mere seconds. This is the type of flick that is perfect for Carrell. Not too long ago a movie like this would have been fodder for Jim Carrey, no questions asked, and while Carrell is certainly capable of the same kind of manic energy, there's something else there, an ineffable quality that differentiates himself from early-Carrey and that ilk of performer.

I really couldn't be happier to see Steve Carrell moving on to bigger and better things. He's talented as all hell and I look forward to years of hilarity and hijinks to ensue. I'll be real interested to see if he attempts to make that sort of dramatic turn somewhere down the road ala Jim Carrey.