HBO passes on comedy from Tropic Thunder's Ben Stiller, Steve Coogan, and Justin Theroux

HBO has officially passed on Documental, the half-hour comedy series that was, in spirit anyway, a spin-off of Tropic Thunder, reuniting that film’s Ben Stiller, Steve Coogan, and Justin Theroux for a show about a documentary filmmaker (Theroux) making a movie about his inept idol’s (Steve Coogan) return to the business. As we pointed out when it was first reported, it seemed to be a longer rehash of Rain Of Madness, the Hearts Of Darkness-like “making of” Tropic Thunder available on that film’s DVD. Apparently the pilot failed to impress HBO executives, who were all like, “Where’s da sexy goils talkin' 'bout der goil troubleses?’ Because HBO is run by crude, mid-20th-century stevedores. Anyway, for anyone who wants to see what Documental might have been like, Rain Of Madness is still readily available on YouTube.