Alexander Payne impressed by HBO's new package

Put down the merlot! Alexander Payne, director of wine-snob favorite Sideways, has signed on to direct HBO's dark comedy Hung reveals Gillian Reagan. Apparently the main character is, um, well-endowed. "Think of him like Spider-Man," show creator Colette Burson told Daily Variety last month. "He's an average guy who gets in touch with his innate superpowers." Okay, wait maybe we should keep drinking to watch this one.

Payne's attachment comes as HBO has given the pilot a firm greenlight. The project has been in the works for some time, and was originally developed by Burson, Dmitry Lipkin and Michael Rosenberg at Maverick TV. When Maverick TV shut down earlier this year, Rosenberg -- who had run the shop with Guy Oseary -- brought the project to Blueprint Entertainment.

Hung has been on the fast track ever since and will now be the first show lined up at the pay cabler by new HBO Entertainment prexy Sue Naegle, who only officially joined the network a couple of days ago. Hung would also represent Payne's first directing gig for the small screen. The project was originally created by Colette Burson and The Riches creator Dmitry Lipkin. Payne is expected to sign on as an executive producer, along with Burson, Lipkin, Blueprint's Michael Rosenberg, Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss.

Hung revolves around a well-endowed man who is plodding along in middle age as a struggling father and high school coach. The character was once a high school sports legend, and his luck returns when he figures out a way to use his best asset. Lipkin and Burson said they've been having fun with the concept, cracking each other up while fleshing out the idea. Lipkin called the show a "comedy with a lot of heart," and both scribes said they were pleased with being the first piece of development chosen by the new Naegle regime at HBO. "It does feel like HBO has been invigorated as a place to go for creative talent," Burson said.

HBO has several other new series in various stages of development, including True Blood, a vampire drama scheduled to begin in the fall; One Percent, a drama about a motorcycle gang; Last of the Ninth, a drama set in the New York Police Department in the 1970s; and David’s Situation, a comedy by Bob Odenkirk and David Cross in which Mr. Cross portrays himself living with two roommates, one liberal and one conservative.