Bow down to Apatow

Knocked Up writer/director Judd Apatow is to be named comedy person of the year - in a good way - at a new event coinciding with Montreal's Just For Laughs comedy festival, according to reports.

Showbiz trade paper Variety says Apatow - currently one of the hottest properties in Hollywood after his involvement in Knocked Up, Superbad and The 40-Year-Old Virgin - will receive the accolade at the inaugural Just Comedy conference, which will run alongside the main festival.

Apatow's other writing and producing credits include Will Ferrell hits Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy and Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby, as well as hit US TV series The Larry Sanders Show.

Meanwhile, his production company, Apatow Productions, has a number of projects in the pipeline, including Forgetting Sarah Marshall with Gossip Girl star Kristen Bell and, yes, Russell Brand, which opens in the UK on April 25th.

Step Brothers, with Jim Carrey and Jon C Reilly, will follow in August, while Pineapple Express, starring Knocked Up's Seth Rogen and Spiderman's James Franco, is slated for September.

The Just For Laughs festival will run from July 10th to 20th.

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