EXCLUSIVE: Nobody Wants This is not living up to its title because Netflix definitely wants more, renewing the hit romantic comedy starring Kristen Bell and Adam Brody for a second season. The pickup, which will be revealed this morning by Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria, comes with a change at the helm of the breakout series, created and executive produced by Erin Foster.
Girls alums Jenni Konner and Bruce Eric Kaplan have come on board as executive producers and showrunners for Season 2, leading a writers room which has been open for a couple of weeks. They are joined by Nora Silver, President at Jenni Konner Productions, who will executive produce alongside the duo as well as returning executive producers, including Foster, Bell, Steven Levitan and Oly Obst. 20th Television is the studio.
The deals with Konner, Kaplan and Silver were made before Nobody Wants This’s Sept. 26 release as one of the strongest launches for a Netflix original comedy series ever. Debuting at #2 in its opening weekend, Nobody Wants This climbed to #1 in its first full week, garnering impressive 26.2M views in its first 11 days of release as well as seizing the zeitgeist and triggering a conversation.
“Creating Nobody Wants This will forever be a career highlight for me,” said Foster, who drew inspiration from her personal experience for the series. “The incredible cast, crew, producers and executives all made this into the show it is today, and to experience viewers’ reactions to this series now that it’s out in the world has been more than anything I could have dreamed. I’m so lucky to be able to continue this story, and to do it alongside Jenni Konner and Bruce Eric Kaplan, who I’ve been such a fan of since Girls… Justice for healthy relationships being the most romantic!”
Foster and Nobody Wants This executive producer Craig DiGregorio were announced as co-showrunners when the then-untitled series was officially ordered by Netflix in March 2023. Less than two months later, the WGA strike started, lasting five months. When it was over by the end of September, Nobody Wants This was on a very tight schedule, with filming slated to begin in January so the series can meet its delivery date.
Because of that, I hear it was all hands on deck, with Levitan jumping into the writers room for a stint, and comedy veteran Jack Burditt, one of Levitan’s top EPs on Modern Family, brought in to help too. He eventually took the reins as a showrunner of Season 1, sources said. Foster’s priority remains writing for the series, which reflects her story and her voice.
Konner and Kaplan are known for their work as executive producers on HBO’s Girls, with Konner serving as co-showrunner with series creator Lena Dunham. Konner and Dunham went on to create and executive produce the HBO comedy series Camping. Konner served as showrunner on Hulu’s Welcome to Chippendales, and her EP credits also include Single Drunk Female, Generation and the upcoming Deli Boys and The Bobby Love Story. Kaplan also has executive produced, HBO’s Six Feet Under, Apple TV+’s Mr. Corman and Dunham’s upcoming Netflix series Too Much.
This marks Konner and Kaplan’s first collaboration since Girls.
“It’s a dream to be working on Nobody Wants This,” Konner said. “Erin is the rare creator with a crystal clear voice and a genuinely collaborative spirit. I am a true fan of Erin’s show and also feel so lucky to be back in a room with two of my favorites, Bruce Kaplan and [writer] Sarah Heyward from Girls.”
Added Kaplan, “I am excited beyond belief to be a part of Season 2 of Nobody Wants This, created by the hilarious Erin Foster. It is such a unique and beautiful show and I am already having the best time working on it.”
In Nobody Wants This, an agnostic podcast host and an unconventional rabbi on the rebound walk into a party. When they walk out — together — the unlikely pair, Joanne (Bell) and Noah (Brody), can tell there is something between them. But also potentially between them, with their differing outlooks on life, all of the modern obstacles to love, and their sometimes well-meaning, sometimes sabotaging families — including her sister Morgan (Justine Lupe) and brother Sasha (Timothy Simons).
The cast also includes Stephanie Faracy, Tovah Feldshuh, Paul Ben-Victor, Michael Hitchcock, Jackie Tohn, Sherry Cola, Shiloh Bearman and Emily Arlook. Sara Foster, Danielle Stokdyk and Jeff Morton also executive produce. The series is produced for Netflix by 20th Television in association with Steven Levitan Productions.
Konner is repped by CAA and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller. Kaplan is with CAA.
