During a TCA panel about his new Love TV series, coming to Netflix, Judd Apatow was asked, again, if there is any hope for a revival or reboot of the Freaks and Geeks TV show, cancelled by NBC, far too soon. When he answered, Apatow forgot to slam the door shut and bolt it, and it seems industry reports parsed his answer as containing more hope than he intended.
What is sure, is that Apatow praised the Freaks and Geeks cast and crew, who have gone on to prove themselves as special as fans knew they were, 16 years ago. The Freaks and Geeks cast includes: Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley, James Franco, Samm Levine, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Martin Star, Busy Philipps, and Sarah Hagan.
Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and Deadline all published similar accounts of the story.
Following is an excerpt from Variety (linked above):
Though creator Paul Feig has shot down revival rumors in the past, on Sunday at the Television Critics Association press tour in Pasadena, Calif., exec producer Judd Apatow said there is a glimmer of hope.
“I don’t think so,” he said, talking to a small group of reporters, when asked if he’d want to revisit the “Freaks and Geeks” characters. “I think we had a beautiful poetic ending, and it’s a miracle that it worked so well. You don’t want to see what happened in the diner after ‘The Sopranos’ ended. As much as at the time it threw you, as the years passed you think, that was a brilliant ending so I don’t think we would mess with it, but you never know — anything can happen.”
It is that “but you never never know — anything can happen,” that reporters (and fans) latched onto.
When Deadline tweeted its version of the account (linked above), Apatow took to Twitter, to set the record straight.
https://twitter.com/juddapatow/status/688842096090820608
That might have been a light slam, but if the door has been bolted, the ensuing click was inaudible.
Here is the thing, Mr. Apatow: not only does “you never know, anything can happen,” convey a glimmer of hope, the use of “pretty clear” in the clarification tweet does not come across the same as an unmodified “clear” would.
Closing the tweet with, “I guess people really want it,” can even be read as if you find it surprising to learn people still want some sort of followup to one of the best little shows that ever could.
Were you a fan of the Freaks and Geeks TV show? Would you watch a revival, reboot, or sequel? Is Apatow having a little fun — knowing exactly what kind of response his statements can inspire, or are the media and fans blinded by hope? Sound off, in the comments.
