Archer is between seasons again, so fans can refocus their attention on other important matters, such as discussions of who would play the animated spy series’ characters in a hypothetical live-action movie. It turns out Archer executive producers Matt Thompson, Casey Willis, and Adam Reed have had some of these conversations themselves. In a recent interview with The Daily Beast, Thompson revealed that they would hope to bring Jon Hamm on board to play Sterling Archer.
Now, whether or not such a movie will ever be made is a big question mark at this point. The FX series is still going strong, and Thompson doesn’t think they will make a movie before it ends. On top of that, they may opt to stick with animation.
“We vacillate between if you do it, why are you doing the TV show? And should it be live-action, or should it be cartoon?” he said. “The talk is there, we just still haven’t decided. I don’t think there will be a movie before the last episode of Archer airs on TV.”
One factor that has played a role in the decision process is the example of Cartoon Network’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force. Thompson’s friend David Willis co-created the Adult Swim animated series, and he believes that making a movie version hurt the TV show’s viewership. “That’s influenced our decision-making a great deal,” said Thompson.
Ultimately, it sounds like the final say is up to Reed, but if they do make a movie and it is live-action, they definitely want Jon Hamm. It sounds like the only downside they see is that it would mean changing the voice of the the animated character, which is provided by H. Jon Benjamin; their ideal is Jon Benjamin’s voice coming out of Hamm.
“If it is live-action — and if it is not Jon Benjamin — it is our greatest hope that it would be Jon Hamm,” said Thompson. “I can say that with confidence.”
Hamm has proven interested in Archer in the past; he once guest-starred as another character on the show. On top of that, his TV series Mad Men influenced the look of the animated series. We can definitely see Hamm as Sterling Archer, assuming all of these stars eventually align.
