Freaks and Geeks: Why Busy Philipps Isn’t Hot for a Revival

Freaks and Geeks fans may have to spend the weekend chanting, “Kim Kelly is my friend,” to maintain their collective Zen. Busy Philipps is not keen on the idea of a Freaks and Geeks TV show reunion. Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley, James Franco, Samm Levine, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, and Martin Starr also starred in the 1980s-set coming of age comedy drama.

While doing press for HBO‘s Vice Principals, which will intentionally end after its second season, Philipps told Pop Sugar she is “wary” of revivals, referring to them as “retreads.” She says Paul Feig, Judd Apatow and the rest of the writers did the best they could to provide a satisfying ending that could serve as a series finale. Given cancellation was likely but not definite, we agree. Still, we would love to return to Chippewa, Michigan. How about you?

Busy Philipps on the prospect of a Freaks and Geeks reunion, from Pop Sugar

“I feel wary of that track. . . . I get really tired of people trying to get these reunion movies and retreads of shows, like ‘When’s the Dawson’s Creek reunion? When’s the Freaks and Geeks reunion?’ and it’s like, ‘Guys, those shows existed, they ended, and let them live in that moment. We don’t need to retread everything.’

I know people feel a certain sense of nostalgia always. I’m nostalgic about things that happened two days ago. But you also have to appreciate that people want to move on and create new art and different art and do different things with their time. In some cases when shows feel that they’ve been canceled too soon, it’s always exciting when they get a new life. Like The Mindy Project was so exciting for them, and Cougar Town was so exciting for us, to leave ABC then be able to go to TBS and have a great end of our run there. But sometimes I think people just need to let things lay.”

Busy Philipps discusses the Freaks and Geeks TV series finale

“Paul [Feig] and Judd [Apatow] and all the writers really did the best they could do to end the season with an ending that would feel somewhat satisfying where it could be the series finale as well. They didn’t know at the time if we were going to be canceled, but they felt pretty confident that we were going to be canceled, so they tried to make that last episode satisfying for people to watch.

I would have loved for Freaks and Geeks to have gone on a little bit longer, but in some ways, but part of the charm and the appeal of the show is that it exists in this, for lack of a better word, perfect 18 or 19 episodes. The concern is of course, if you have to continue on, are you able to maintain that level consistently of the product that you’re putting out, of the stories that you’re telling?

For the record, Ms. Philipps, Freaks and Geeks ran for 18 episodes. NBC cancelled the show after airing 12. The network eventually burned off the remaining installments, during the summer of 2000.

What would the Freaks and Geeks characters be up to, today?

Phillips does not care to speculate about what Kim Kelly would be doing today. She told Pop Sugar, “‘It’s all subjective and what you want to see Kim Kelly doing in the future is not what someone else wants to see Kim Kelly doing in the future. It’s sort of cool that people have been able to come up with their own versions of who these people are and what they’ve become.'”

Since Philipps introduced the topic, I’ll bite. Personally, this Freaks and Geeks fan thinks Kim Kelly would shove Busy Philipps into a locker. Then she would grab her purse, dump it, steal her lunch money, and stomp on her foot. Finally, storming off, she would shout over her shoulder, “And keep your big mouth shut!”

See? Kim Kelly is my friend.

What do you think? Are you a Freaks and Geeks fan? Would you watch a reunion special or movie? How would you want it to play out? What do you think Kim Kelly would say to Ms. Philipps? Let us know, below.