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Tony Hale and Alia Shawkat join Lucille Ball biopic

Arrested Development stars Tony Hale and Alia Shawkat have joined the cast of Aaron Sorkin's Lucille Ball biopic.

Being the Ricardos, written and directed by Sorkin, is set during one production week of the 1950s TV comedy I Love Lucy - beginning with the Monday table read and concluding with the Friday taping - when Lucille Ball and her co-star and real-life husband Desi Arnaz face crises that could end their careers and their marriage.

On Monday, more casting news was announced. Hale has been tapped to play Jess Oppenheimer, the head writer and executive producer of I Love Lucy, while Shawkat and Carol actor Jake Lacy will portray the series' longtime writing partners, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll Jr.

They join a cast which already includes Nicole Kidman as Ball and Javier Bardem as Arnaz, as well as J.K. Simmons and Nina Arianda as sitcom co-stars William Frawley and Vivian Vance, who brought their characters of Fred and Ethel Mertz to life onscreen.

Avengers star Clark Gregg has also been added to the line-up, as have actors Robert Pine, Nelson Franklin, Linda Lavin, John Rubinstein, and Christopher Denham.

"Being the Ricardos is a drama about the people behind the making of television’s most famous comedy. I’m looking forward to working with Nicole, Javier, J.K., Nina and the rest of our great cast," Sorkin said in a statement, reports Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.

Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr., the couple's children, are among the film's producers.

Being the Ricardos is now in production in Los Angeles.