Here’s Why Judd Apatow Will Never Reboot ‘Freaks and Geeks’
Happy birthday, Freaks and Geeks! The one-season wonder that launched a truckload of comedy careers just turned 25, inspiring warm fuzzies from the show’s creators and stars.
“Freaks & Geeks premiered 25 years ago today on @nbc,” Paul Feig posted on Instagram along with a treasure trove of throwback photos. “It was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life and changed everything for me. Eternally grateful to @juddapatow for taking a chance on my little spec script about growing up in Michigan and making it happen with @dreamworks as well as to our stellar cast, writers, directors and crew for bringing it to life. I truly love you all.”
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John Francis Daley, who played Sam before becoming a successful screenwriter, noted the anniversary on Twitter. “Freaks and Geeks is 25 years old today,” he posted. “What do I do to slow down time?!”
Samm Levine, Neal on Freaks and Geeks, noted that it only felt like 21 years since his time on the show.
“This show changed my life in many ways, I’m still close friends with many of the people involved. They’re like family in a lot of ways,” Seth (Ken) Rogen posted on Instagram. “It’s rare to get to be a part of something so heartfelt and resonant, and I’m very grateful it was my first experience as an actor, and I’m honored to be amongst its cast.”
With so much love from the original cast and creators, could a reboot be in the offing?
Never going to happen, according to Judd Apatow. While he also celebrated the show’s anniversary on his social media, he’s on record as saying a grown-up Freaks and Geeks reunion is off the table. Over the years, Apatow has expressed interest in doing a series on a streaming service — no commercial breaks, no mid-season cancellations — but he doesn’t want to revisit his show about those awkward teen years.
“I don’t want to do more Freaks and Geeks because we liked how it ended, so I feel it’s unwrapping something and seeing if you can not screw it up; I don’t think we would do that,” Apatow said in 2017. “Also, the world has changed so much. Back then in 1999, we were talking about the pre-computer and cell phone age that was before YouTube, Google, Snapchat. I don’t close the door on anything but my inclination is that we said all we had to say.”
Apatow isn’t the only one slamming the door either. “I don’t think anyone would do it,” Rogen told People last year. “It’s so rare that you do something in your career that is actually just viewed as good. I know enough now not to fuck with that, to just let it be good and not try to go revisit it.”
“It’s set in amber now,” Feig said in 2021, “and there’s something lovely about that.”
