Prettay… prettay… prettay… sad.
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” is officially ending with Season 12, which premieres Feb. 4 at 10 p.m. on HBO and Max. The 10-episode season will conclude with a series finale on April 7.
You might be thinking: Isn’t every season of “Curb” potentially its last? While this is sorta true — the series has long operated with an open invitation from HBO and without a strict timeline — the cable network is, for the first time, definitively promoting the next batch of episodes as Larry David‘s “final season.”
“As ‘Curb’ comes to an end, I will now have the opportunity to finally shed this ‘Larry David’ persona and become the person God intended me to be — the thoughtful, kind, caring, considerate human being I was until I got derailed by portraying this malignant character,” David said in a statement. “And so ‘Larry David,’ I bid you farewell. Your misanthropy will not be missed. And for those of you who would like to get in touch with me, you can reach me at Doctors Without Borders.”
“Curb” traditionally pops up only periodically. By the late 2000s, the show got into an every-other-year groove. And then it took a big break from 2011 until 2017, when it returned. It was again back in 2020 and 2021, which has amounted to 12 seasons in 24 years.
David famously had a greenlight at HBO to do a new season whenever he’s ready. “Every season is the final season,” exec producer Jeff Schaffer once told Variety. “When the last episode occurs, there will never be another episode of ‘Curb.’ It just takes time for him to go out in the world.”
But it appears this time the end is for real. “It’s hard to say farewell to such a ground-breaking, brilliantly funny and iconic series like ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm,’ which has left its mark across television and the comedy genre,” said HBO CEO Casey Bloys. “Working alongside Larry David and Jeff Schaffer as well as all of the comedic masterminds that comprise our producers, cast and crew has been a joy that I will always treasure.”
Details about the final season are still scant, but Tracey Ullman is listed in the cast, which means we can expect to see the return of Irma Kostroski, her brash and sometimes grotesque councilwoman whom Larry seduces with the goal of getting a local ordinance repealed.
Also returning to “Curb” are Jeff Garlin, Susie Essman, Cheryl Hines, J.B. Smoove, Richard Lewis, Ted Danson and Vince Vaughn. Of course, there will likely be a slew of A-list guest stars as well — perhaps Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Michael Richards will reunite once again.
Throughout its 24-year run, “Curb Your Enthusiasm” has captured the hilarious misadventures of its curmudgeonly protagonist as he challenges the absurdity of certain social conventions. The series has coined terms such as the “pants tent” to the “accidental text on purpose” to the “stop ‘n’ chat” and, of course, the “chat ‘n’ cut.” Over the course of 11 seasons, Larry has performed on Broadway, opened a spite store, staged a “Seinfeld” reunion and hid from the Ayatolla. One standout episode in Season 4, in which Larry brings a prostitute to a Dodgers game in order to beat traffic by using the carpool lane, even saved an innocent man from going to prison.
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” is created by David, who executive produces with Garlin and Jeff Schaffer. Laura Streicher and Jennifer Corey are co-executive producers.