The Cosby Show cast. Photo: AAP

Bill Cosby could have his new comedy show with the NBC network as soon as next year.

The series, described as a “classic, extended-family sitcom” with Cosby as the patriarch, is currently in the writing stage, NBC executives said.

The show was first announced in January.

Cosby, 77, has a long history with NBC, including his seminal The Cosby Show, which became a smash hit 30 years ago and helped rescue a network then at the bottom of the ratings.

After that, Cosby headlined a sitcom at CBS, among other series.

If the new Cosby project isn’t ready for next year, it could be a contender for spring 2015.

The upcoming Cosby venture will use multi-cameras and be filmed in front of a studio audience, a format that has lost ground at NBC, where single-camera comedies like 30 Rock, The Office and Parks and Recreation have thrived.