Tracy Morgan has signed on to his first film project since recovering from the car crash that severely injured him and killed his friend and fellow comedian, James McNair, more than a year ago. According to The Wrap, Morgan has joined the cast of Fist Fight, a comedy co-starring Charlie Day and Ice Cube.
In the film, Day plays a teacher who gets challenged to a fight by an aggressive and intimidating colleague, played by Ice Cube. The supporting cast includes Breaking Bad‘s Dean Norris, who plays the school’s principal, and 22 Jump Street actress Jillian Bell as a guidance counselor. It is currently unclear what Morgan’s role will be or how much screen time he will get.
Morgan has generally stayed out of the public eye since the accident in June 2014, when a limousine carrying Morgan, McNair and a group of others was struck by a Wal-Mart truck on the New Jersey Turnpike. He’d sustained a brain injury and fell into a coma for eight days.
In the last few months, though, Morgan has made a few public appearances, including an interview with Matt Lauer on The Today Show and presenting at Sunday night’s Emmys — where he received a standing ovation.
Before returning to the big screen, Morgan will revisit familiar territory, hosting the October 17 episode of Saturday Night Live .