“The Big Sick” star Kumail Nanjiani just shed some light on the upcoming Hulu limited series, “Welcome to Chippendales.” The show will be eight episodes long and based on the Chippendales and their murderous founder, Somen “Steve” Banerjee.
Nanjiani will play the role of the Indian American entrepreneur who founded the sparsely clad male troupe. The story would reportedly span 15 years of the entire story, kicking off from when the group was newly formed to their less popular days.
While talking about his involvement in the series, Nanjiani revealed that the already dark show would show even darker layers of the events between Banerjee, the Chippendales, and everyone else who the founder saw as a threat. He described the series as one with many “twists and turns.”
Nanjiani Will Play Somen ‘Steve’ Banerjee In The New Series
Nanjiani recently spoke to People about his upcoming series, “Welcome to Chippendales.” The limited series will be reportedly released on Hulu with the 44-year-old playing Banerjee. The series follows the true story and legacy of the Chippendales founder.
When talking about the Hulu series, Nanjiani revealed that the real story was much wilder than people thought. “People don’t know that the real story of it is really wild. Some really surprising stuff happened, and it’s surprising that people don’t really know about it.”
He added that “Welcome to Chippendales” has a lot of “twists and turns” throughout the series and that the show would cover around 15 years of the story, beginning from when the Chippendales became popular till when they started dying down. “The behind-the-scenes stuff that happens is crazy. It’s enough for, like, 10 podcasts,” he added.
The Chippendales Were Discovered In The 1970s
“Welcome to Chippendales” will reportedly be eight episodes long and shed light on the “insane, darkly comedic, crime-ridden story behind the unique male revue that became a cultural phenomenon.”
The man in question, Banerjee, was an Indian American who founded the Chippendales in the 1970s. The group was a male stripper troupe that made female audiences in the thousands in Los Angeles line up to get admission into his club, Destiny II, previously known as Round Robin.
The troupe was the first-ever of its kind and became so wildly popular that it evolved to giving Broadway-style Burlesque performances worldwide. By the early 1980s, the show had grown so big that around 15,000 customers frequented the establishment every month.
Banerjee’s Murderous Legacy
Despite his apparent success with his club and world-known dancing troupe, Banerjee still had several deeply rooted insecurities about his business. At the start of the Chippendales’ success in 1979, the club owner hired someone to set fire to Moody’s Disco, the nightclub of a rival. He tried to do the same thing five years later at the Red Onion Restaurant and bar.
In the ensuing years, Banerjee had no reservations about committing crimes to preserve his business. He got into an agreement with Nick De Noia, a New York-based producer and choreographer who expanded the dancers into New York and improved their routines. In exchange, Banerjee split the rights of the Chippendales with him.
Years later, the club owner became resentful of De Nola’s popularity and success with the group and then arranged for his assassination. He killed the producer in 1987 and was eventually apprehended by the FBI in 1994. Just hours before Banerjee was sentenced, the business owner died by suicide. His other crimes include plotting to kill previous Chippendale members he thought were threats.
‘Welcome To Chippendales’ Was Written By Robert Siegel
Besides his role as the lead character, Nanjiani also serves as an executive producer of the limited series. Other executive producers include his wife, Emily V. Gordon, Dylan Sellers, Chris Parker, Rajiv Joseph, and Mehar Sethu. Robert Siegel served as the writer of the series.
When talking about the role, Nanjiani revealed that he liked playing antagonist roles because they were “fun.” “I kind of like playing sort of bad guys. It’s fun. You get to be like, ‘How would I decide that I want to do something bad to somebody?”
The “Silicon Valley” star added that he was looking forward to taking up more anti-hero roles. “I want to play more bad guys.” Hulu hasn’t disclosed any news about the “Welcome to Chippendales” release date.
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