Steve Carell and John C. Reilly will bring 'The Odd Couple' to Broadway in 2027

Steve Carell and John C. Reilly will star in a 2027 Broadway revival of Neil Simon's "The Odd Couple," directed by Thomas Kail of "Hamilton," producers announced Thursday. The production begins performances March 3, 2027, at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre and opens March 23.

Carell will take the role of Felix Ungar, with Reilly playing Oscar Madison, for a 15-week limited engagement marking the centennial of Simon's birth. Simon died in 2018.

"Why are we doing this? We need to laugh. Period," producer Jeffrey Seller said.

Kail, a Tony Award winner and a producer of the revival, called Simon's play "one of the great American comedies" and said it was an honor to be part of the team bringing it back to Broadway. "Underneath the extraordinary humor is something deeply human," he said.

The director said Carell and Reilly "can make an audience laugh uproariously one moment and move them deeply in the next."

The play's original Broadway production opened in 1965 under director Mike Nichols, with Walter Matthau and Art Carney starring. It received four Tony Awards, including best play.

Simon’s play became a film in 1968 and later inspired a long-running television series with Tony Randall and Jack Klugman.

Carell made his Broadway debut in 2024, taking the title role in Lincoln Center Theater's revival of Anton Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya." He won a Golden Globe for "The Office" and appeared in films including "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Little Miss Sunshine," "The Big Short" and the "Despicable Me" franchise.

Reilly's Broadway work includes Sam Shepard's "True West" opposite Philip Seymour Hoffman, Stanley Kowalski in "A Streetcar Named Desire" and Steppenwolf Theatre Company's "The Grapes of Wrath." His screen credits include "Boogie Nights," "Magnolia," "Step Brothers," "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" and "Stan & Ollie."

In 2025, Reilly released his debut album, "What's Not to Love?", under his vaudevillian persona, Mister Romantic.

Joining the actors are Laura Benanti as Gwendolyn Pigeon and Heléne Yorke as Cecily Pigeon. Kevin Del Aguila plays Roy, James Monroe Iglehart plays Murray, Rob McClure plays Vinnie and David Zayas plays Speed.

Seller and Kail are producing alongside The Season's Mike Karns and Steven Tartick, as well as Emanuel Azenberg, a longtime producer of Simon's work. David Korins is the scenic designer, Brenda Abbandandolo handles costumes, Stacey Derosier designs lighting and Jill BC Du Boff designs sound.

General sales begin Nov. 17 at 10 a.m. ET through the show's website, Rolling Stone reported.