Norm Macdonald Has A Show, a premiere date, and a sit-down with old boss Lorne Michaels
We’ve been hearing about Norm Macdonald Has A Show—the high-profile Netflix continuation of Macdonald’s long-running online talk series—for a while now, as the streaming service builds up hype for its latest foray into the world of comedy talk. (R.I.P. The Joel McHale Show, Chelsea, and The Break.) Now, the service has set a premiere date for Macdonald’s new show, along with an eclectic guest roster that includes a number of well-known, Norm-ishly “difficult” comedy ringers, guys like Dave Letterman, Chevy Chase, and Macdonald’s old former boss, Lorne Michaels.
That’s a pretty intriguing pull, because while Macdonald has been pretty clear over the years that he doesn’t really blame Michaels for his Saturday Night Live firing in 1998—pinning most of the onus on NBC’s Don Ohlmeyer—it’s still always been a notably awkward installment of his career. (Plus, there’s just the fact that both Macdonald and Michaels are celebrated weirdos, albeit of two very different flavors.) Meanwhile, other guests on the show’s first-season schedule aren’t any less eye-catching or head-scratching, including Drew Barrymore, David Spade, Jane Fonda, M. Night Shyamalan, Michael Keaton, outlaw country singer Billy Joe Shaver, and TV judge Judy Sheindlin. In other words, it’s going to be a pretty odd, potentially fascinating bunch of people at the desk when Norm Macdonald Has A Show debuts on September 14, with all 10 episodes dropping on the same night.