WILMINGTON — A locally filmed project in pre-production now has three names attached to it, all of whom have appeared most recently in well-known television series including “The White Lotus” and “Only Murders in the Building.”
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Molly Shannon (“SNL,” “The White Lotus,”), Kumail Nanjiani (“The Big Sick,” “Welcome to Chippendales,” “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire”) and Sam Nivola (“The White Lotus”) are set to star in “Driver’s Ed.” It’s the latest film produced by Jonas and Jennifer Pate from their new young adult production company. The announcement of the top tier casting was first made by Deadline.
“Driver’s Ed” is being directed by one-half of The Farrelly Brothers, known for “There’s Something About Mary,” “Kingpin,” “Shallow Hal,” and “Dumb and Dumber.” Bobby Farrelly is leading the helm, after having released “Dear Santa” starring Jack Black during the 2024 holiday season.
Best known as co-creator of Netflix’s “Outer Banks,” Jonas Pate told Port City Daily Monday Farrelly’s comedic prowess mandated heavy-hitters carry the plot. The script, written by Thomas Moffett, follows a high schooler who ends up on a road trip to Chapel Hill to try and win back his college girlfriend. Random classmates end up in tow, after he drives off when his teacher steps out of the car briefly during a road lesson.
The Pates were part of casting, overseen by Lisa Mae and Craig Fincannon, who have ties to Wilmington’s film community going back decades. Nanjiani will take on the role as the driver’s ed teacher and Shannon will be the school principal.
Shannon is recognizable from her work on “SNL” from 1995 to 2001, particularly known for characters like Mary Catherine Gallagher and Sally O’Malley, whom she reprised on the recent “SNL 50” celebration just more than a week ago. Most recently, she performed as Kitty Patton in “The White Lotus” season one and as Bev Melon in the latest season of Netflix’s “Only Murders in the Building.” The latter just received the 2025 Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series.
Nanjiani also joined her in the “Murders” series as Christmas-obsessed resident Rudy Thurber and the two presented at the SAG Awards this year. An Oscar nominee for Best Original Screenplay in 2017, Nanjiani was hailed for co-writing “The Big Sick” with his wife, Emily V. Gordon — loosely based on their real-life courtship before marriage. He also was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for his role as Steve Banerjee in the Hulu series “Welcome to the Chippendales.”
Nivola has been hailed for his breakout role in “The White Lotus” season three, currently airing on HBO. He also appeared in Netflix’s “The Perfect Couple,” starring Nicole Kidman and Live Schreiber.
“We were on to Sam before we even knew he was in ‘White Lotus,’” Pate said, adding Nivola will play the high school student trying to navigate a long-distance relationship with his college girlfriend, played by Lilah Pate, Jonas and Jen’s daughter.
The rest of the young cast has yet to be announced for “Driver’s Ed” but likely will come sometime this week, Pate added. He told Port City Daily last year he would likely lean on new faces for many young roles, like he did in both “Outer Banks” and “The Runarounds,” calling those discoveries a “great joy” in the creation process.
“We found actors that people didn’t know,” Pate said last year. “And we love doing that — to watch all the casts, such as on ‘Outer Banks,’ succeed the way they have.”
“Outer Banks,” filmed in Charleston, will wrap its final season this year for Netflix. Pate is also working on the script for the second season of “The Runarounds,” with season one slated to debut this summer on Amazon. It, too, centers on teens — only this time, they graduate from high school, start a band and hit the road to see if they can make it in the music industry. “The Runarounds” was filmed entirely in Wilmington.
Pate said the same crew who helped in both TV series will remain part of his crew for all of his YA-produced projects, including “Drivers’ Ed.”
No film permits have been filed yet with the City of Wilmington, though meetings with production have taken place, according to a city spokesperson. Pate said cameras for “Driver’s Ed” will start rolling Monday and the shoot will last roughly five weeks.
“Jen and I are just thrilled to be bringing this to Wilmington,” he said. “We’re really excited about this being the start of a series of films and events coming to North Carolina.”
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