Kaitlin Olson to Lead HIP Remake at ABC

ABC has ordered a pilot for a remake of the French series HIP with Kaitlin Olson tapped to star.

ABC has ordered a pilot for a remake of the French series HIP, and the network has recruited It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Kaitlin Olson to star in the lead role. Deadline reports that Olson is also on board to produce the series with Rob Marshall (Veronica Mars) serving as showrunner. Marshall will also executive produce with pilot director Alethea Jones (Mrs. Davis), as well as writer Drew Goddard and Sarah Esberg for Goddard Textiles. Thomas and Dan Ehteridge are also exec producing for Spondoolie Productions alongside Pierre Laugier and Anthony Lancret for Itineraire Productions.

Per the report, the new HIP follows Morgan, played by Olson, a “single mom with three kids and an exceptional mind who helps solve an unsolvable crime when she rearranges some evidence during her shift as a cleaner for the police department. When they discover she has a knack for putting things in order because of her high intellectual potential she is brought on as a consultant to work with a by-the-book seasoned detective, and together they form an unusual and unstoppable team.”

There are some more details that have been shared specifically in regard to the lead character. The report further describes Olson’s Morgan as someone who leads a “chaotic, hand-to-mouth existence in spite of (or because of) her IQ of 160. Assertive, fearless and possessed with a serious anti-authority streak, Morgan is able to spot details that others ignore as the white noise of life.”

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Kaitlin Olson Lands Her Next Lead Role

Olson may be best known for her long-running role in the hit FX comedy show It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, a character she’s been playing since 2005. She also starred in the Fox sitcom The Mick and the Quibi show Flipped, garnering an Emmy nomination for the latter. Olson has also been nominated for an Emmy for her guest role in the HBO series Hacks. She’s also appeared on the big screen in films like Leap Year, Vacation, and Arizona, and she can be seen in the upcoming film Champions with Woody Harrelson, Ernie Hudson, and Cheech Marin.

HIP, aka HPI: Haut potentiel intellectual, was created by Alice Chegaray-Breugnot, Stéphane Carrié and Nicolas Jean. The French-Belgian series stars Audrey Fleurot as Morgane Alvaro, following a similar plot to the premise for the American remake with Olson outlined above. The show premiered on TF1- in France in 2021 and has aired two seasons.