Well, it isn’t an animated series, but it’s something.
HBO announced on Wednesday that Jon Stewart would do a stand-up comedy special, his first since 1996, for the network. HBO did not say when the special would air.
The announcement came two months after HBO and Mr. Stewart abandoned a highly anticipated animation project that Mr. Stewart had worked on for the network for 18 months. The project was plagued by delays — the animation specials were initially supposed to be unveiled during last year’s presidential election — and HBO ultimately blamed its cancellation on technical issues.
The announcement also comes as Netflix has all but elbowed HBO out of the big-name stand-up comedy business. In the past year, the streaming service has signed up a large number of top comedians for specials — including Chris Rock, Dave Chappelle and Amy Schumer — essentially taking over a genre that HBO once dominated.
Casey Bloys, HBO’s president of programming, said at a Television Critics Association event on Wednesday that the economics of the specials did not make sense for the network. In recent months, Netflix has spent up to $20 million per special, significantly more than any other outlet has been willing to pay.
In a statement, Mr. Stewart said: “I’m really thrilled to be able to return to stand-up on HBO. They’ve always set the standard for great stand-up specials. Plus, I can finally use up the last of the Saddam Hussein jokes left over from my first special.”
Mr. Stewart, the former host of “The Daily Show” on Comedy Central, will also host an HBO special this fall, “Night of Too Many Stars.” He has over two years left on his production deal with HBO.
Continue reading the main story
Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/26/business/media/jon-stewart-to-perform-stand-up-special-on-hbo.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
Speak Your Mind
You must be logged in to post a comment.