Kal Penn to Star in Belated, New Comedy About Coming Out Later in Life

Kal Penn is bringing a new queer role to the small screen!

The actor, talk show host, and former White House staffer is set to star as the male lead of new FX pilot Belated. According to Deadline, The half-hour comedy "follows Owen (Penn), a man who has come out in his 40s, along with his ex-wife Diana, as they attempt to navigate their new normal. The pair continue to co-parent together while entering into new relationships."

The media outlet revealed that Owen seems to have his life figured out, until "a hookup with another man makes Owen reevaluate his sexual orientation and belatedly realize that he is gay."

The pilot is directed and executive produced by Rescue Me and The Job co-creator Peter Tolan, alongside Nick Alford of Tolan's Cloudland.

Tolan and Penn both seem to have personal ties to the project, as each came out as gay later in life. Most recently, Penn came out and announced his engagement to his partner of 11 years, Josh, in his memoir You Can't Be Serious. Penn chronicled how the pair met and fell in love while he was living in Washington D.C.

"The whole point of writing this book was for the reader to feel like we're having a beer together," he told People. "I want to take you into my stories and I want you to experience them with the same joy that I've experienced them. That was the way that my friends have met my parents and Josh, as they've gotten to know them over the last 10 years."

Aside from his recently released memoir and the announcement of his upcoming FX comedy, Penn's been keeping busy as the executive producer and star of the upcoming holiday film Hot Mess Holiday, set to be released Dec.11 on Comedy Central.

RELATED | Kal Penn Comes Out as Gay, Announces Engagement to Partner of 11 Years