Catching up on Curb Your Enthusiasm

As Larry David’s cringe-tastic comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm prepares to kick off its 12th and final season on HBO and Max, The A.V. Club decided to put together a handful of highlights from our coverage of the show over the past few years. We’ve resurfaced recaps of key episodes, recent news about the series, interviews with cast members, some pretty, pretty, pretty good lists and a few other pieces that show our appreciation for one of TV’s longest-running and most original comedies. Of course, this is just a taste of the work we’ve done around Curb, so feel free to dig deeper into The A.V. Club to discover more great content created throughout the show’s astounding run. And then stick with us in coming weeks, because we’ll also have ongoing coverage of Curb Your Enthusiasm’s final season, including weekly recaps of each episode.

10 times J.B. Smoove was the best part of Curb Your Enthusiasm

Those of us who felt compelled to rewatch beloved shows during the more locked-down days of the pandemic may have noticed a certain “ruckus” was missing from the earlier seasons of Curb Your Enthusiasm. That’s because, if you’ve acclimated to the pace of the later seasons, especially nine through 11, Leon Black (portrayed by actor/writer/comedian J.B. Smoove) has been a force in defining it. Where Larry David is self-loathing, Leon is all self-love; when Larry has a wild idea, Leon either immediately cosigns it, or goes wilder. And Larry supports Leon’s big schemes as well, even driving him to different spots around town to step in for workers who need someone to watch their post as they go pee (a business endeavor Leon and Larry named Gotta Go in season 11). The comedic escalation that Smoove’s improvising chops have brought to this show is rare and undeniable. Read More

Curb Your Enthusiasm is coming to an end (again)

At the HBO Upfronts presentation attended by The A.V. Club last month, CEO Casey Bloys said the network would leave the decision to end Curb Your Enthusiasm to Larry David. Apparently, Larry David has decided (again), because on Thursday, HBO announced the long-running comedy show’s 12th and final season. Curb’s swan song will premiere on February 4. Read More

It seems pretty, pretty, pretty likely this will be the last season of Curb Your Enthusiasm

After 23 years of curbing our enthusiasm, Larry David might be ready to call it a day again. Filming has wrapped on season 12 of Curb Your Enthusiasm, and in a since-deleted tweet, writer-producer Jon Hayman eulogized the show. “Maybe you love the show. Maybe you hate the show,” Schaffer wrote. “Maybe you don’t give a shit. In any event, shooting the last scene of the last episode of the final season.” We imagine a more formal obituary is on the way. The A.V. Club has reached out to HBO for comment. Read More

Richard Lewis is returning to Curb Your Enthusiasm, and that’s pretty, pretty, pretty good news

Guess who’s back, back again. Richard Lewis is back. Tell a friend. Read More

J.B. Smoove on Harley Quinn, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Larry David

Fictional Larry David lives on: Curb Your Enthusiasm renewed for 12th season

Please continue to Curb Your Enthusiasm, as HBO’s long-running comedy has been renewed for a monumental 12th season. The series recently picked up yet more Emmy nominations—including for Outstanding Comedy Series—so it’s no surprise that the cable network would want to invest in even more Larry David. Read More

Curb Your Enthusiasm nearly killed (fictional) Larry David

To anybody planning a heist to liberate Batgirl off the HBO servers, grab the “Larry died” Curb Your Enthusiasm cut while you’re at it, will you? The Emmy-nominated season might have ended peacefully (at least, as far as Curb goes), but since executive producer Jeff Schaffer is “always thinking, ‘Hey, what if this is it?,’ they filmed a very final potential finale before deciding to come back for a 12th season. Read More

Larry David to return for another season of Curb Your Enthusiasm

Curb Your Enthusiasm will return to HBO for a twelfth season. Larry David confirmed the news at a TV Academy event for the Directors Guild Of America. David and Curb executive producer Jeff Schaffer were in attendance. Read More

Curb your enthusiasm for the trailer for The Larry David Story documentary

When he’s not shilling crypto or yelling at Alan Dershowitz, Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Larry David likes to be left alone. Or, at least, that’s what his public persona has taught us over the last 30 years. But Larry’s refusal to believe his own hype has grounded him thus far, which makes a documentary about the man’s life all the more intriguing. So what is Larry like when he’s not “Larry”? Read More

Finally: Snoop Dogg releases track that’s just him rapping over the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme

Earlier today, we reported that Snoop Dogg had purchased the rights to the Death Row Records brand, acquiring the name of the label that helped launch his ever-improbable career as a musician, entrepreneur, and friend of Martha Stewart’s. Now, just a few hours later, we’re happy to report that he’s achieved yet another career milestone of greater or equal impact: Releasing a song in which he raps and sings over the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme. Read More

Bill Hader makes a “shplendid” appearance on a zippy Curb Your Enthusiasm

A series of mishaps is practically guaranteed in any given episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm; what’s less certain is just how uproarious the end result will be. Whole seasons of Curb have functioned like Rube Goldberg machines of misfortune and jokes. When everything comes together just right, waiting for the other shoe to drop for Larry or anyone from his coterie can be a delight. Sometimes it’s just harder to see the forest for the trees, which is how I’ve felt about season 11 in general. Read More

Everyone puts way too much faith in Leon on Curb Your Enthusiasm

Like Cosmo Kramer before him, Leon Black (J.B. Smoove) has little direction or skill, yet he’s usually in cushy circumstances. Even when he does slip up, the blowback is minimal, if it exists at all. More often than not, things work out in Leon’s favor, which may be why people are inclined to listen to him, even though he spent an inordinate amount of time this season trying to find a woman named Mary Ferguson to take on a trip to Asia. Where Larry is dogged by bad luck, Leon is buoyed by serendipity—and it usually leads to some of the funniest moments on Curb. Read More

On Curb Your Enthusiasm, Tracey Ullman pulls Larry into a high-stakes game of politics

It’s certainly not every day that the selfishness of Larry David impacts the future of an entire city. Maybe this is why Curb Your Enthusiasm doesn’t let Larry dabble too much in politics. The ramifications would be too chaotic. Read More

Seth Rogen tries to dismantle some of Larry’s hang-ups on Curb Your Enthusiasm

Appearances, assumptions, and anchovies are all up for debate in “Man Fights Tiny Woman,” another energetic outing for Curb Your Enthusiasm’s 11th season. The guest stars are once more in abundance, as Seth Rogen signs on to appear on Young Larry—and, just as quickly, backs out—while Josh Gad plays a chiropractor who should probably pay more attention to his own backside. And Larry and Freddy’s friendship suffers another blow from the contents of a refrigerator. Read More

Larry gets a lot of grief from his friends on a so-so Curb Your Enthusiasm

Favors have always been a hot topic of discussion on Curb Your Enthusiasm—when and when not to ask for one, what the grace period is for returning one, if there’s any kind of friendly “interest” that develops, which might require you to return a midsize favor with one on a larger scale. You know, the stuff that makes up most relationships (at least, for this Midwesterner, who often has this nagging doubt that some favor has been left unpaid). Read More

Woody Harrelson drops by a thorny Curb Your Enthusiasm

Season 11 of Curb Your Enthusiasm has been, if not quite pulling its comedic punches, then giving the sense that it’s reserving its energy for something. The heavily improvised show has felt even more loosely connected than usual, despite sticking with the blackmail plot introduced in the premiere episode, “The Five-Foot Fence.” Read More

Curb Your Enthusiasm perks up as Larry and Susie team up against bad dinner conversation

Watching Susie and Larry spar is one of the most consistent pleasures of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Her disdain and his indifference are a volatile, reliably hilarious combination. Susie Essman has hit so many different notes of contempt through her “Get the fuck out, Larry!”s, she’s practically a virtuoso. But when something manages to exasperate both Larry and Susie, prompting them to set aside their differences and heap scorn upon some poor, unfortunate soul? Well, that’s just magical.“The Mini Bar” has just such a moment, and it’s one of the highlights of the liveliest episode of the season so far.
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It’s Dylan O’Brien’s turn to bump heads with Larry on a new Curb Your Enthusiasm

Curb Your Enthusiasm promised us the same old Larry for season 11—misanthropic, curmudgeonly, and determined to uphold his own social rules. There wouldn’t be any newfound respect for life or his fellow man, not even in the wake of a pandemic (this season, Curb’s in a mostly post-COVID world). Read More

Curb Your Enthusiasm immediately puts Larry through the wringer in 11th season premiere

Has any episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, let alone a season premiere, garnered as much sympathy for Larry David (the fictional one, that is) as “The Five-Foot Fence”? We all have our moments of agreeing with Larry or at least seeing his point of view in a given season. But the season 11 premiere had me feeling bad for the guy on more than one occasion and nodding vehemently as he made the very valid point that six months is a long time to wait for repayment of a $6,000 loan. Read More