Bridesmaids breakout Melissa McCarthy is set to make her feature debut as a leading lady this weekend with the release of the comedy Identity Thief, but the actress and her husband Ben Falcone are already setting up three more upcoming projects with their newly-formed On the Day production banner.  Briefly:

  • Michelle Darnell – McCarthy will star in and produce this comedy for Universal based on an original character of her creation and a story idea hatched by McCarthy and Falcone.  Falcone will produce and write the script alongside McCarthy and Groundlings member Steve Mallory.
  • Cousin Irv From Mars – This adaptation of the upcoming book by Bruce Eric Kaplan (Girls) will be developed by On the Day at Universal, with Kaplan writing the script.  The story centers on a boy and his weird cousin who happens to be from Mars.
  • Just Do It – McCarthy and Falcone board this Fox adaptation of the sex-help book of the same name by Douglas Brown.  The duo will produce and take a pass on the existing script by Michael Aguilar (The Departed), and McCarthy is attached to appear in the film.

Hit the jump for more details.

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All the aforementioned information comes via THR, which broke the news regarding McCarthy and Falcone’s new projects.  The logline for Michelle Darnell is being kept under wraps, but that appears to be the highest profile film for McCarthy on the list, as it sounds like a starring vehicle for the actress.  Just Do It also looks interesting, as the memoir adaptation recounts the author and his wife’s “attempts to rekindle their 14-year marriage with a 101-day sexual marathon, some of it good, some of it bad, most of it funny.”

Setting up a production company seems like a logical and smart step for McCarthy, who has become ridiculously in-demand since her standout turn in 2011’s Bridesmaids.  She currently stars on the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly, but one assumes that once her contract with the program is up, she’ll leave to pursue more varied interests.  She and her husband have been writing together for years, and he also appeared in Bridesmaids as the not-air marshal during the plane sequence.

McCarthy will next be seen this Friday opposite Jason Bateman in Identity Thief, but she also stars alongside Sandra Bullock in Bridesmaids director Paul Feig’s buddy cop comedy The Heat, which was recently moved to a prime summer release date of June 28th.

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