SPOILER ALERT: This article contains spoilers for “Valerie Gets a New Chapter,” the Season 3 premiere of “The Comeback,” now streaming on HBO Max.
Created by Lisa Kudrow and Michael Patrick King, “The Comeback” was initially envisioned as a long-running comedy series, continuing until either HBO or the creators decided to end it. The show centered on Valerie Cherish, a sitcom actress played by Kudrow, who was followed by reality cameras documenting her return to the spotlight on a subpar network show called “Room & Bored.” The cameras captured every indignity and slight she faced.
However, the series didn’t follow this path. When “The Comeback” debuted in 2005, HBO was experiencing an unusual lull, despite being home to hits like “Sex and the City” and “The Sopranos.” During this uncertain period, HBO decided to cancel “The Comeback” after just one 13-episode season.
Over time, “The Comeback” gained a devoted fanbase, growing into a cult classic. In 2014, HBO approached King and Kudrow to see if they had ideas for a second season. Reviving the show was a rare occurrence at the time, driven by genuine affection rather than corporate interests. The eight-episode second season follows Valerie as she learns her nemesis Paulie G. (Lance Barber) has created “Seeing Red,” a dark dramedy for HBO. Despite initial resistance, Valerie takes on the role of Mallory Church in the show, which earns her an Emmy, though she misses the ceremony to support her hospitalized hairdresser, Mickey (Robert Michael Morris).
Over a decade later, the third and final season of “The Comeback” premieres as the world has moved on. Set in summer 2023, during a writers strike and on the brink of an actors strike, Valerie attempts to join the roster of celebrities playing Roxie Hart in “Chicago” on Broadway. Patience (Ella Stiller), her social media assistant, documents her journey with a reluctant Jane in tow. Mickey is no longer with her, having passed away in 2017. The season takes a turn when Valerie is offered the lead in the first sitcom entirely written by AI, presenting a novel dilemma.
In a recent interview at King’s office on the Warner Bros. lot, Kudrow and King discussed the return of the show for a third and final time. Unlike previous seasons, they penned all the episodes, with King directing. They started this process in November 2024. They describe Season 3 as the conclusion of a trilogy, a unique gift that emerged amidst a significant shift.
“It’s been an event,” Kudrow notes. “So I don’t know how to make another event in a year.”
Does Valerie Cherish live within both of you?
Lisa Kudrow: Yeah. She does.
How do you translate that into a script that requires a beginning, middle, and end?
Michael Patrick King: We imagine setting a tee for a golf ball, and then Lisa takes a swing at it. Both of us take swings at all the characters. Occasionally, we find moments that are “definitely” in the show, usually those with emotional depth and humor. I won’t reveal which, but there are some lines from Valerie in the last episode that had Lisa and me laughing hard.
The structure is organic. We knew where we started and ended, but the challenge was how to let the fictional elements wobble without collapsing entirely.
We spoke to various people — Lisa’s a scientist, so she seeks the truth in situations. People tend to react negatively to AI in art. This gave us the idea of a secret, akin to the “Deep Throat” notion of, “It’s a secret. Don’t tell anybody.”
Courtesy of HBO
“The Comeback” has created a universe of characters. How do you decide which ones to bring back and introduce?
Kudrow: We always want to include Jane, and we like Valerie being married to Mark. They’ve weathered storms, making their relationship stronger. Billy is also essential.
King: And Billy, of course. Every character we’ve introduced is someone we’d like to revisit. However, only those who push Valerie forward are chosen.
New characters were necessary. With Mickey gone, we needed someone to react to Valerie’s actions. Lisa calls him “the audience,” as if saying, “Did you just hear that too?” Ella Stiller takes on this role, reflecting the trend of actors having a younger social media-savvy assistant.
Kudrow: It’s also humorous. Working for Valerie Cherish isn’t prestigious, but Valerie pays for capturing nothing. Nothing happens!
King: Right! “What are your hours?” “24/7.” Valerie’s paranoid something might happen while she sleeps!
Courtesy of HBO
Was she a family friend? She’s 20 in 2023 and stays for three years!
King: It’s the paycheck and ease. Valerie isn’t demanding like a Vogue editor. She even protects her, saying, “She’s frail.” Ella is like a non-threatening Mona Lisa, making Valerie comfortable in an interview.
Then there’s Jack O’Brien. We wanted someone who saw Valerie as a star, much like Mickey. In dark times, Valerie needs someone who sees her as she used to be.
Kudrow: Jack’s role justifies why Valerie wants him to leave his retirement home to do her hair at 86. She craves that comfort, and he knew Mickey.
King: We aimed to bring someone with similar DNA to Valerie. He’s gay, older, Celtic, and unique. Jack O’Brien, though not an actor, is remarkable in the role, emphasizing he’s not Mickey. He even says, “I’m not Mickey,” allowing the audience to relax.
Valerie playing Roxie Hart — were there other possibilities for where she’d be in 2023, or was “Chicago” the only choice?
King: NeNe Leakes, Erika Jayne, and others, non-Broadway performers turned Broadway stars, made it plausible.
Was that the real cast of “Chicago”?
King: That was a Broadway cast, flown in from various productions. It was quite extravagant.
When a “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star was cast in “Chicago,” I suggested profiling the regular “Chicago” company.
Kudrow: Yeah! What’s it like?
King: By year five of the 11-year hiatus, we knew “Chicago” was perfect for Valerie as Roxie, especially since she fails at the simplest number.
In the season premiere, Jane walks off. How did you determine her relationship with Patience?
Kudrow: Jane has no interest in social media. She’s there reluctantly.
King: The hook was money. Jane isn’t there from goodwill. Valerie loaned her money, binding her somewhat by guilt.
Kudrow: Jane wants to do meaningful things that don’t generate income. She has a ranch in Topanga Canyon, making borrowing logical.
Three years later, nothing has changed. We cut a line where she says, “You know what, Val? Stacking oat milk is so peaceful.”
At Trader Joe’s, where Valerie meets her next?
Kudrow: She means it — “and I have a girlfriend.” Everything sounds great.
King: There’s a pattern in the show: connecting to showbiz reveals insecurities. Jane is fine until showbiz unravels her. Jack O’Brien’s character, Tommy Tomlin, claims, “I’m 85! I don’t care!” but wears a toupée on set, saying, “If anyone asks, I’m 70.” Showbiz exposes who you are or want to be.
Can you discuss casting Fran Drescher as herself?
King: Interacting with famous people, we hope they like the show or are Lisa fans.
Kudrow: Or fans of Valerie.
King: We wanted Fran for her strike moment, warning, “AI is coming for us.” It was crucial to capture that time. Fran asked, “That’s it?” so we created a second scene. It started as a cameo but grew due to her appreciation for Lisa.
Kudrow: Dueling photo approvals!
King: It’s a classic “The Comeback” moment: Valerie oversharing with a celebrity.
Three years later, Valerie’s doing “Cherish the Time.”
Kudrow: Uh huh! Her podcast.
About “The Goodbye Girl”!
Kudrow: Watching some movie on TV? There is nothing happening.
Valerie and Mark have moved into Sierra Towers.
King: We wanted a change. Sierra Towers is mythic. Valerie talks about who used to live there, not current residents. They’re empty nesters; Francesca is on the East Coast. No more Brentwood.
We referenced world changes, as Valerie says, “We almost had to evacuate” — almost being a big deal.
Kudrow: He feels adrift, right? And he’s not recovering.
After Valerie is offered the AI sitcom job, she tells Mark, “I need writers to like me.” It’s a powerful line, recalling Paulie G. Have any writers liked her? Discuss that line.
Kudrow: Writers, producers, showrunners, decision-makers, and networks decide who they want in shows. If blackballed, you won’t work. AI is the strike’s villain to her. Mark explains, but she insists, “I need them to like me to cast me!”
King: It wasn’t a strained moment when Lisa wrote, “I need writers to like me.” That’s the most Valerie thing we’ve said all day! “I need writers to like me, Mark” — explaining to him. If they dislike her, things go badly. She’s from the “I’m It!” era. Writers were kings then — 23 episodes. If they like you, they write funny things for you. You’re in TV Guide — not without writers liking you.
Kudrow: She can’t be the first on an AI-written show. If it fails, nothing ever again. Stakes are high.
Who is Valerie without Mickey by her side?
Kudrow: Without Mickey, Valerie’s alone. She’s her cheerleader. He affirmed her, but now there’s no echo.
King: There’s no backup.
How was it doing the show without Robert Michael Morris?
Kudrow: Writing was challenging without him. Who reacts? We included a line he’d said, laughed until we cried, and thanked him. It felt like he was present.
What was the line?
King: I don’t remember.
Lisa, do you remember?
Kudrow: Uh huh.
King: What was it?
Kudrow: It was, “Are they wearing pantyhose?”
King: In season two, naked women surrounded Valerie, and Michael had never seen shaved women. He asked me, “Were they wearing pantyhose? And why?” [Kudrow laughs hard] Michael’s success is evident. Though not here, he feels present. People ask about Mickey and wish he hadn’t died — a tribute.
Kudrow: He’s missed! That’s amazing.
Valerie changes her mind about the AI sitcom after a resident has a heart attack in front of her during an indie movie shoot at an assisted living facility. Was that always the planned end for Episode 1?
King: We hoped Valerie’s desperation, following the heart attack, would entertain enough for audiences to support her.
Kudrow: She says, “Billy, I’m being stupid — set the meeting.” It’s funny because she’s inviting trouble!
King: Reality: she hit rock bottom. In that movie, with the girl director and the person dying, wearing that outfit — not great, especially with a show offer.
Kudrow: Just to clarify, when I say she’s stupid to set the meeting, Valerie doesn’t know that.
King: She’s optimistic.
The show presents AI as an existential threat. How do you feel about that, personally? How much of that sentiment is in the show?
Kudrow: I might change my mind, but I’m less worried for myself than young, unlicensed creators. Writing as a career has shrunk since we began. It’s no longer an obvious choice; opportunities are scarce.
King: AI is taking away learning spaces. It’s efficient and quick, but it removes the room for creativity and growth. If predictions hold, trial and error will vanish, and errors will be inherent.
Kudrow: Beyond entertainment, it’s concerning. Administratively and business-wise, people fear replacement.
King: Like Lisa, I’ve adopted Valerie’s view: maybe humanity will continue.
Maybe!
King: Maybe we’ll keep going.
You’ve mentioned it’s a trilogy. Why does it have to be? What if, in a year, you feel compelled to do more?
Kudrow: It’s been an event every 10 years. I don’t know how to create another event annually.
King: We’re grateful and thrilled to do this repeatedly. We poured everything into it. It’s not a gimmick.
I’m sad. In the first season, you planned to do it yearly.
Kudrow: Right.
And then that didn’t happen.
Kudrow: Right! The second season was delayed 10 years, with changes. Paulie G. wrote a gritty single-camera.
King: The brand was given to us. We expected, “We’ll do next season, then three in a row, and it’ll be fun. Lisa’s phenomenal!”
But the brand became, “See you in 10 years.” Fortunately, a seismic shift occurs each time. We don’t want it common; it’s too much of a gift.
Look, Kate, Lisa and I could write an episode of Valerie going to a yoga camp. Adorable. Funny! Great characters. She’d nail it. But that’s not us. We’re a satire of time and civilization progressing strangely.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
