Gina Torres

Chris Rock to direct "Wife" comedy

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Chris Rock will direct and star in the comedy "I Think I Love My Wife," which begins shooting this month in New York.

He replaces Charles Stone ("Mr. 3000"), who recently dropped out of the Fox Searchlight project.

The film, a remake of Eric Rohmer’s 1972 French comedy "Chloe in the Afternoon," centers on Richard Cooper (Rock), a professional who is married to Brenda (Gina Torres), with whom he has a young daughter. When his old flame (Kerry Washington) enters the picture, Cooper soon discovers he is in way over his head. Rock wrote the script with longtime collaborator Louis C.K.

The film will mark Rock’s return to the director’s chair; he last shot the 2003 comedy "Head of State," in which he co-starred with Bernie Mac.

Washington, whose recent credits include "Fantastic Four," "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" and "Ray," will appear in the upcoming Wayans brothers comedy "Little Man."

Torres, who co-stars on the new Fox hostage negotiation drama "Primary," also stars opposite her husband, Laurence Fishburne, in "Five Fingers," which recently premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.