A reason to want to be around: HBO orders new Tim Robinson pilot
Robinson's new show will be a half-hour scripted comedy, which means from now on the money might be his money
Aux News Robinson
It looks like Tim Robinson is about to get his streaming doubles, and thank god for that. (We’ll be the first ones to tune in when he inevitably hits triples.) Netflix must have started a pay-it-forward chain with I Think You Should Leave, which just aired its third season, because HBO is now also racing to get in on the wonky Tim Robinson action.
According to Deadline, the network has greenlit a new, half-hour pilot from the former SNL writer and sketch comedy auteur. The show is titled The Chair Company. (Tragically, not the Table Company… we guess it’s best for some things to remain a mystery.) Starring Robinson and written by himself and his longtime creative partner, Zach Kanin, the pilot will tell the story of a man, who after an embarrassing incident at work, finds himself investigating a far-reaching conspiracy. Adam McKay and Todd Schulman are also on board to executive produce.
While it’s easy and genuinely thrilling to imagine The Chair Company as merely a longer version of an I Think You Should Leave sketch (the logline alone could describe like half of them already), this very well might not be the case. Nathan Fielder was just a goofy guy (albeit with a slightly nefarious bent) on Nathan For You until his HBO show, The Rehearsal, gave him the space and budget to go full Synecdoche, New York. And that was before the finale of The Curse gave us one of the most spine-chilling television moments of the year. Ditto for Bill Hader, who slowly morphed Barry from a laugh-out-loud comedy into a real and genuine tragedy.
Tim Robinson definitely has those same dark inclinations, whether he’s confronting an existential crisis brought on by a presumed monster crawling to eat him through his doggy door (“What have they done to us??”) or hogging all the time on the zip line. It will be fascinating to see just where his bizarre brain and wonderfully rubber face take us this time.
24 Comments
the pilot will tell the story of a man, who after an embarrassing
incident at work, finds himself investigating a far-reaching conspiracyA conspiracy that leads him to hit a man in the cup after he finds himself unable to turn down the volume on calicocutpants.com
Robinson screaming for people to hold the door open before slowly walking over to it is an absolutely incredible bit
Did you give? You gotta give or it could go dark!
With HBO money, what will Tim do with all the bones? And the worms?
I may injure myself clicking on the “let people enjoy things” meme over and over and over and over and over…
I hated it once, then I watched it one day. That’s just one of the things that separates me from the other people who hate things they’ve never seen.
Not sure which “it” you mean since my reaction is to the bulk of Emma’s tastes. Not a fan of Robinson despite getting a laugh at a few sketches (I find that he frequently overstays a joke I *do* like until I no longer like it). Not a fan of Fielder (Nathan for You has its moments but everything after has felt like art school jagoffs making inside jokes). Not a fan of Synechdoche (Kaufman is a brilliant writer but a woefully self-indulgent director). Enjoyed Barry but find it vastly overrated. Hope that clears up both the “it” and any “watched it one day” side-eye you might be throwing my way. Not saying you were, just that it’s possible and with this crowd fucking likely.
You’ve evolved slightly. But it’s pretty messed up that you tend to hate things you’ve never experienced, in the first place.
I wouldn’t say Netflix just aired Season 3 of I Think You Should Leave (it’s been almost a year and it better be coming back for season 4), but a new Tim Robinson project is always good news.
About 11 months ago counting as “just aired” for the third season threw me off a little and made me wonder if I missed more new content The wiki article doesn’t say anything about a renewal for a fourth season, but it looks like Netflix only ordered season three about ten months after season two?I can’t tell if this announcement means ITYSL is dead, or if it’s more or less in line with “this show comes out sporadically.”
As far as I can remember, it seems like the past three seasons have come out every other year, with the renewal coming around midway through the off-year. Hopefully that trend continues and we get a season 4 renewal in the next couple months, but I would be happy with I Think You Should Leave going on hiatus/ending as long as he’s doing other stuff.
I think it could probably stand to take a break. I adore the show, but season three was a bit weak imo, maybe because there’s only so many ways you can stretch the core premise of those sketches?That said, I hope we get something showcasing more of Patti Harrison’s writing soon, because she’s an absolute delight.
That’s cool. But I’d be more excited if it were more Detroiters
DEEEVERAUUUUWHOA-WHOA
Hell yes. This show is criminally under-rated. Everyone get to Paramount+ and binge it real quick
Please please center around Karl Havoc.
I’ve heard that Robinson will be playing an off-putting character who suddenly gets angry and starts yelling for no reason.
This seems like a cash grab.
It’s mainstream, it’s for jocks.
BRING BACK DETROITERS YOU COWARDS.
Here’s hoping he casts Sam Richardson in this, and we get a nice long 5 or 6 season run.
Looks like he finally figured out how to make money off this thing.
It’s simply TOO GOOD
C’mon now, you expect me to believe that?