As if Netflix doesn’t have enough going on today, the streaming service just announced it’s grabbed two big names – Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant – to join its newest single-camera comedy series Santa Clarita Diet. This should be good news for fans of the short-lived Better Off Ted, since the showrunner of that series, Victor Fresco, will head up Netflix’s newest sitcom.
Santa Clarita Diet was picked up straight to series by Netflix, with an expected premiere date in 2017. The story will focus on a married couple, Joel (Olyphant) and Sheila (Barrymore), who are realtors “leading vaguely disconnected lives in the Los Angeles suburb of Santa Clarita.” That’s when things take a turn, as apparently some kind of “dramatic change” happens to Sheila and the couple’s lives spiral “down a road of death and destruction… but in a good way.”
Sounds intriguing, and at least far more interesting than the service’s newest half-hour “comedy,” Flaked. Since the show is so far out, more details regarding other cast members or an episode count haven’t yet been revealed. Given the off-kilter weirdness of Better Off Ted and that quirky plot description, there’s definite potential for Santa Clarita Diet to be a fun little sitcom. Netflix’s VP of original content certainly thinks so, of course:
“The genius casting of Timothy and Drew combined with Victor’s unique comedic sensibility will delight, and definitely surprise, our members around the world,” Netflix vp original content Cindy Holland said.
After a few years of sticking to hour-long dramas, Netflix has been encroaching more and more into the sitcom format (with some series stretching past that 30 minute mark occasionally). Apart from Flaked, there’s Master of None, Love, The Characters, and Fuller House. The quality might not be the most consistent, but it’s nice to see that the company is covering as many of its original programming bases as possible.
Tell us, are you looking forward to seeing Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant in Santa Clarita Diet? Let us know in the comments.