Harry Styles has been announced as the executive producer of a new US sitcom, set to debut later this year.
The show was inspired by the period between One Direction coming third on ‘The X Factor’ and becoming global household names, during which time he lived in the attic of producer Ben Winston and his wife, Meredith.
Titled ‘Happy Together’, the sitcom will star Damon Wayans Jr and Amber Stevens-West as a fictional character, whose lives are changed when a pop singer comes to stay with them.
Felix Mallard, best known for starring as Ben Kirk in the Australian soap ‘Neighbours’ (!!), will play the character inspired by Harry.
Ben Winston, who is also executive producing the sitcom, previously directed a number of One Direction’s most popular music videos, including ‘Best Song Ever’, ‘Night Changes’ and their final offering, ‘History’.
He also produced the documentary ‘One Direction: This Is Us’ and famously works with James Corden on ‘The Late, Late Show’ over in the US.
A CBS spokesperson said: “Although the series is inspired by when Ben and Harry lived together, that’s where the reality ends. The show is not based on real life experiences and characters.”
Last year, Ben spoke for the first time about the unorthodox living situation, telling Rolling Stone: “Those 20 months were when they went from being on a reality show, X Factor, to being the biggest-selling artists in the world.
“That period of time, he was living with us in the most mundane suburban situation. No one ever found out, really. Even when we went out for a meal, it’s such a sweet family neighborhood, no one dreamed it was actually him. But he made our house a home. And when he moved out, we were gutted.”
He continued: “We’d be in bed like an old couple… and the door would go off. The stairwell was right outside our door, so we’d wait to see if Harry was coming home alone or with people.
“He wasn’t always alone, but it was exciting seeing the array of A-listers that would come up and sleep in the attic. Or he’d come and lounge with us.”
Harry seemingly remembers things a little differently, though, noting: “I was alone… I was scared of [Meredith].”
‘Happy Together’ will debut on CBS in the US this autumn.
