©Hulu/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection New York’s Town Hall venue is providing some alternative programming for Election Night — a revival of a cult streaming series.
“Difficult People,” the sharp sitcom that aired for three seasons on Hulu, from 2015 to 2017, is reuniting its cast on Nov. 3 for a staged reading of creator Julie Klausner’s script for a follow-up movie, which she co-wrote with Alex Scordelis. The movie, which was commissioned by Universal and never produced, sees Klausner’s protagonist, Julie, and her best friend, Billy (Billy Eichner), once more attempting to make their dreams of stardom come true even after retreating from the world of entertainment. Throughout, they’re forced to reckon with the ways the industry has changed since we last saw them, from the glut of cheap horror films to the continued rise of social-media influencers.
Klausner and Eichner will be joined on by “Difficult People” cast members Andrea Martin (playing Marilyn, Julie’s mother), James Urbaniak (Arthur, Julie’s boyfriend) and Gabourey Sidibe (Billy’s restaurant boss Denise) and guests including Christopher Meloni, Cecily Strong, Michael Urie and Paul Walter Hauser. (Though Cole Escola, who played Billy’s loathed co-worker Matthew, is unavailable, Klausner has found someone equally adept at high camp — Susan Lucci will be playing the role, as announced by Escola and Lucci on Instagram.) All will be working within the distinct “Difficult People” register: The show skewered both Hollywood and its own protagonists, who were at once clear-eyed about the shortfalls of the industry they hoped to join and delusional about their own prospects. Originally bought by USA, “Difficult People” became one of Hulu’s first original series.
Julie Klausner and Billy Eichner ©Hulu/Courtesy Everett Collection For Klausner, whose recent credits include acting in “Long Story Short” and “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” and writing on “Schmigadoon,” this return is both nostalgic and suffused with potential. As she tells Variety, she has hope that the evening might bear fruit and give rise to more “Difficult People” down the line. Either way, revisiting her character after about a decade gave her the opportunity to comment on years’ worth of stories about which Julie and Billy might see through their familiar caustic, perceptive lens.
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