Reilly will perform as Dewey Cox on tour

CULVER CITY, Calif., Dec. 4 (UPI) -- Actor John C. Reilly is set to play a seven-city U.S. tour as the rock-and-roll icon he portrays in the new comedy, "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story."

Reilly is slated to perform live as Dewey Cox with his band, The Hard Walkers, for the "Cox Across America Tour," Columbia Pictures announced Monday.

The concert series includes dates at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, with subsequent shows in Chicago, Austin, Nashville, San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York's fabled Knitting Factory.

Each of the concerts will follow a special screening of "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story," which opens in the United States Dec. 21.

"Not since Duran Duran toured America in 1984 have people been so excited about a rock tour," producer Judd Apatow said in a statement.

Starring Reilly, Jenna Fischer, Tim Meadows and Kristen Wiig, the movie was co-written by "Freaks and Geeks" collaborators Apatow and Jake Kasdan and directed by Kasdan.