Paul Giamatti Will Play a Hardboiled Miami Detective in FX Pilot ‘Hoke’

Steve Buscemi is starring in “Boardwalk Empire” on HBO, Philip Seymour Hoffman is the lead of the Showtime pilot “Trending Down” and now Paul Giamatti is headed over to cable with a potential series of his own. (Will John Turturro or Stanley Tucci be next?) Variety reports that FX has ordered a pilot fo “Hoke,” a dark dramedy in which Giamatti will star as Hoke Moseley, a hard-boiled, maybe insane homicide detective in1985 Miami.

“Hoke” is based on “Sideswipe,” “New Hope for the Dead” and “The Way We Die Now,” a series of novels by Charles Willeford. “Out of Sight” writer Scott Frank scripted and directed the pilot, and will serve as showrunner if it gets picked up to series. Giamatti, Frank, Curtis Hanson, Carol Fenelon and Dan Carey are executive producers on the project. FX Prods. will produce the pilot.

“Like Elmore Leonard, Charles Willeford is one of the most deeply respected writers of crime fiction and he created a wholly original and colorful lead character in Detective Hoke Mosely,” FX’s Eric Schrier said in the announcement.

Three of Willeford’s books have been adapted into films. 1974’s “Cockfighter” was directed by Monte Hellman, Fred Ward played Hoke Moseley in George Armitage’s “Miami Blues” in 1990 and Robinson Devor (“Zoo”) helmed “The Woman Chaser” in 1999.

Giamatti will appear in the upcoming season of “Downton Abbey.”