Larry David and Mel Brooks return to TV, and talking to Seth Green
Plus, the new Jewish Superman and sad "The Last of Us" news.
Hello friends! Lots of TV thoughts and IMPORTANT NEWS these past couple of weeks! So lend me your ears (or rather eyes!), kind strangers, and let’s get into it!
Neil Druckmann is out of “TLOU” season 3
Neil Druckmann, the Israeli-American creator of “The Last of Us” games and the co-showrunner of HBO Max’s (yup, that’s the name again) show based on it for the past two seasons, is stepping down from his role in the TV adaptation to focus on his role as the head of Naughty Dog, the gaming studios where the franchise was created.
Following that announcement, Naughty Dog’s Haley Gross also announced she’s stepping back from her role on the show, leaving Craig Mazin, the Jewish creator of the show “Chernobyl,” to helm the series on his own.
I’m feeling… a little torn about this. On the one hand, as a gamer, I desperately need more Neil Druckmann games. On the other hand, nobody gets the heart of this game, which is IMHO a poignant commentary about tribalism, like Druckmann and Gross.
Still, I’m cautiously excited about what happens next, both for the show and Naughty Dog.
The departure of the “Love Island” Nice Jewish Boy
Elan Bibas (no relation as far as we know to the Israeli Bibas family) was booted out of “Love Island USA” this week. Like any Jewish celebrity who has an Israeli name and might have a picture or two from a trip to Israel on his social media, the fitness influencer got a lot of hate on social media, but also, a whole lot of love. You can find out more about him over at Hey Alma.
He also once and for all cleared up the controversy about how to pronounce his name:
@embibas#stitch with @stevenpalma__ for all those confused
Also, in case you were wondering, yes, absolutely, there was an Israeli “Love Island,” and I wrote all about it.
David Corenswet is the first Jewish Superman
Speaking of gorgeous Jewish men (I’m not trying to objectify anyone, this is just facts), David Corenswet is making history as the first Jewish actor to play Superman, famously invented by Jewish sons of immigrants. Corenswet was super close with his Jewish father who passed away in 2019, and writing about them for Kveller this week had me holding back tears (it’s been a WEEK).
But since this is Jewish TV club, I want to take a moment to talk about Corenswet’s TV roles — specifically, his role in Ryan Murphy’s “The Politician,” which was the first time I realized how magnetic he could be on screen (it was also the role that allowed him to spend the last six months of his father’s life caring for him 😭).
His character, who competes with Ben Platt’s Payton Hobart for the role of student body president, dies in the first episode, and yet somehow he was bumped to series regular and appeared in both seasons of the show, completely hypnotizing us every second he was on screen. The show also features some really delightful Jewish representation from the one and only Bette Midler. Is it great? Eeeeh. Is it diverting TV? Absolutely.
An ode to Jewish director Janicza Bravo on the new Lena Dunham show
On Kveller, I wrote about all the Jewish reasons to watch “Too Much,” Lena Dunham’s new show now streaming on Netflix. I just want to focus on one of those reasons for a moment — Janicza Bravo, who plays a very confident co-worker of messy Jewess protagonist Jess. I knew Bravo as the super talented director of films like “Lemon” and “Zola,” but she absolutely blew me away with her comedic timing, stylishness and also her real life hats.
Forever crushing on Oz from “Buffy”
Did I tell you I got to interview Seth Green? It was in every way a dream come true. I spoke to the Jewish actor and creative (“Robot Chicken” for life!) about his role in the Jewish summer camp movie “The Floaters,” and he was generous and open and went pretty deep. BUT! Just as I was about to ask him if he thinks Oz from “Buffy” is Jewish, our interview ended (to be fair, we were at time!). Do you think Oz is a Jewish werewolf?? Would love your thoughts.
A new very Jewish show from the creator of “BoJack Horseman”
I love the works of Raphael Bob-Waksberg so I am thrilled that he’s working on a show loosely based on his own experience growing up in a Jewish family. It stars Max Greenfield, Ben Feldman, Abbi Jacobson, Paul Reiser and Lisa Edelstein. What more could we ask for?? As always, read more about it at Kveller.
A “Young Frankenstein” TV series may be coming??
And Mel Brooks and Taika Waititi are involved??? Be still my heart.
A new Larry David show is coming!!
And Michelle and Barack Obama are involved?!?! The description is sending me:
“President and Mrs. Obama wanted to honor America’s 250th anniversary and celebrate the unique history of our nation on this special occasion…But then Larry David called.”
I usually hate this surreal timeline we are living in but in this specific instance, I love it very much.
Ricki Lake’s reality gift wrapping competition
I thought you should know that Jewish “Hairspray” star and talk show host Ricki Lake is hosting a gift wrapping reality competition show. IDK, it feels important.
A new Israeli show we at Kveller have been calling “Jews in Jeeps” just premiered on Netflix
If you’re watching “Off Road,” (“Jews in Jeeps” is a better name, admit it), the new reality travel show from “Fauda” co-creator Lior Raz and Israeli TV sensation Rotem Sela (“The Baker and the Beauty,” “A Body That Works”), I really, desperately need you to talk to me because I am having a really hard time with this show.
It depicts the two stars on a 4x4 excursion to Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, two super remote locations that are notoriously rough to travel to (but oh so beautiful!). I’m really struggling with the chemistry between these two (why is Rotem being so mean?? Is she trying to joke??) and the way the two treat the locals (it’s giving Eat Pray Jeep??). The two have a remote therapist helping them through their feelings while traveling and I think I might need one to help me with my feelings about it, too.
What are you watching this week? Let me know in the comments.