The Emmys have one last chance to make things right with ‘The Comeback'

Yahoo

14 hours ago

If at first you don't succeed (at the Emmys), try, try again.
HBO has renewed The Comeback, from Emmy winners Lisa Kudrow (Friends) and Michael Patrick King (Sex and the City), for a third and — the network swears — final season, the network announced Friday. It has been 20 years since the first season debuted in 2005, and 11 years since Season 2 aired in 2014.
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Season 3 of the comedy series will begin production this summer with returning cast members Kudrow as Valerie Cherish, a washed-up actress who's now the subject of a documentary; Dan Bucatinsky as Billy Stanton, Valerie's publicist; Laura Silverman as Jane Benson, Valerie's producer; and Damian Young as Mark Berman, Valerie's husband.
The new season will air on HBO and stream on HBO Max in 2026.
The Comeback is one of those that shows that TV fans often cite as being "robbed" at the Emmy Awards. Meaning it never took home a trophy in any category, and only received four total nominations. Season 1 scored three bids — for Kudrow in Best Comedy Actress, King in Best Comedy Directing, and Best Comedy Casting — while Season 2 nabbed a single Best Comedy Actress citation. It was snubbed both times in the Best Comedy Series lineup.
But other awards bodies were just as guilty when it came to ignoring The Comeback. The Golden Globes blanked the show completely, and the Critics Choice Awards (which were created in between the first and second seasons), only gave Kudrow a nomination. The Comeback's only victories came from the lesser-known kudos like the Gracies, the GALECA Awards, and the International Online Cinema Awards.
Our Gold Derby TV Awards were somewhat kinder, honoring The Comeback with six overall nominations, including a Best Comedy Series bid for Season 2; however, the show was shut out.
Sometimes it takes awards voters a season or two to catch on to audience favorites. Remember when the Emmys didn't truly discover Will & Grace, Fleabag, or Succession until their second seasons? And then there's Schitt's Creek, which wasn't fully embraced by the Television Academy until its sixth and final season.
Of course, historically lauded shows like Better Call Saul, The Good Place, and The Wire never won Emmys at all, despite the love from critics and fans. So, The Comeback would be in good company if its final episodes fail to materialize into award wins.
Neither King nor Kudrow is shocked that The Comeback is returning for a third time. "Valerie Cherish has found her way back to the current television landscape," they said jointly. "Neither of us are surprised she did."
"No matter what the industry throws at her, Valerie Cherish is a survivor," said Amy Gravitt, executive vice president of HBO's comedy programming. "On the 20th anniversary of her debut, Michael Patrick King and Lisa Kudrow have brilliantly scripted her return to HBO and we can't wait to see that."
Are you excited that The Comeback is back for Season 3? Sound off in Gold Derby's TV forum.
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