Marking the second neurotic hire by Amazon in as many weeks, Jesse Eisenberg has signed on to bring the series of short stories he wrote for McSweeney’s to life as a half-hour comedy show. Called Bream Gives Me Hiccups, the 12 stories explore the existential angst of a privileged 9-year-old as he reviews various restaurants—sometimes with his alcoholic mother, sometimes with his friend Matthew, and occasionally with both. Eisenberg wrote the script on spec, and will also direct the project and executive produce alongside Ravi Nandan (Hesher) and John Hodges (Safety Not Guaranteed).
The Bream stories ran on McSweeney’s from May 2012 to December 2013, and each typically ends with the boy rating a new establishment on a scale of 2000 stars. For example, in the young critic’s view, TCBY scores a 1954, Fuddruckers a 1062, and Thanksgiving at a vegan family’s house a 1000. The scale likely has nothing to do with the fact that he hasn’t learned enough about fractions yet; Fuddruckers is the kind of place that requires a very specific rating.