From reality hits such as Gladiators to family-friendly shows like Malcolm in the Middle, revivals are all the rage right now – and one iconic British comedy has just been confirmed to return after a long stint away from screens.
The Inbetweeners was huge in the 2000s and 2010s, following a group of potty-mouthed, unbearably awkward teens. It spawned two very successful films, plus many phrases that cemented themselves in pop culture in schools across the UK (hands up if you were also called a bus w*nker on multiple occasions).
The news was confirmed by the creators Damon Beesley and Iain Morris of production company Fudge Park, along with Banijay UK. If you can’t wait to see the quartet on your screens again, here’s what we know so far about The Inbetweeners revival.
When is The Inbetweeners coming back?
As of right now, no confirmed dates have been listed for The Inbetweeners revival, though the exclusive from The Sun claimed that the show would return next year, 2026. Note that not every publication is reporting this date, however.
Plus, there’s still a lot to consider, which will impact when the show returns.
Simon Bird (the actor who plays Will McKenzie) is currently filming for Star Wars: Starfighter, a film directed by Shawn Levy. This only kicked off in August, and the film isn’t due out until 2027, so there may be a little while before his schedule clears.
Blake Harrison (Neil Sutherland) is also tied up in filming commitments for Fing, an adaptation of a fantasy adventure book by David Walliams, though filming has been going on for a little longer than Bird’s Star Wars project.
Besides general availability, it may also depend on the sort of format that The Inbetweeners returns as…
Will The Inbetweeners revival be a TV series or a film?
Three options seem to be on the table for the format of The Inbetweeners revival, as confirmed by the chief executive of Banijay UK, Patrick Holland. The deal has “the rights and the potential to bring The Inbetweeners back for new audiences across a range of platforms including film, TV and stage”.
So, The Inbetweeners could return in one or even multiple formats, including as an unofficial ‘series 4’. That said, last year Joe Thomas gave the following quote on the Always Be Comedy podcast:
“I don’t think they could do another series. You’d have to be a movie. You’d have to have a very, very clever device for doing another series… A movie, I think works with the right idea. It would be challenging to do another series, just because of the timeline. But with the film, there are all sorts of options.”
There’s no doubt that a film would be an easier commitment than a series for the main cast.
Who is starring in The Inbetweeners revival?
Morris and Beasley provided the following quote on the revival: “Incredibly exciting to be plotting more adventures for our four favourite friends (ooh friends)”.
Therefore, we can assume that the main four cast members will return: Simon Bird as Will McKenzie, Joe Thomas as Simon Cooper, James Buckley as Jay Cartwright and Blake Harrison as Neil Sutherland.
No other supporting cast members have been confirmed. However, some prominent figures from the original that could return include Emily Head as Carli D’Amato, Henry Lloyd-Hughes as Mark Donovan, Emily Atack as Charlotte Hinchcliffe and of course, Taskmaster’s Greg Davies as Mr Gilbert.
What could the plot be of The Inbetweeners revival?
Like many other things about this project, the plot is still in the air. However, Thomas gave his own opinion about a potential plot on the podcast mentioned above:
“I think that adolescents feel things very, very intensely, and I think their fears and their hopes are perhaps even bigger than adults. But in terms of writing a comedy show, the variables are fairly limited, and they operate within fairly narrow parameters. It’s basically ‘Are we going to get into that party, or not?’
“Whereas when you’re an adult, there’s all this other stuff that you have to worry about. That’s why you need these set pieces, like the stag night or whatever. But then, of course, you’re not dealing with normality anymore, because, by definition, it’s a special occasion. So are you seeing them as they are, or are you seeing them as they are in Vegas, which isn’t really what they are?”
James Buckley was previously a lot more sceptical about a possible return, as the core cast would simply have changed a lot compared to what fans may be expecting:
“It was all justified because they were never the heroes… They were idiots and they got what they deserved… That’s why it can’t come back – you can’t have men in their late thirties acting like they’re in sixth form and getting away with that stuff.”
Bird also discussed how the original show hasn’t aged well due to the sexism and homophobia. Will this be something taken into consideration for a revival?
Obviously, the four characters will be older – some perhaps married, divorced, with kids etc. Whether the premise of the show will still work with four fully grown men remains to be seen.
The four cast members did reunite for a one-off special called Fwends Reunited in 2019 with Jimmy Carr, but this was panned by fans and critics alike.
What channel will The Inbetweeners revival air on?
That’s undecided. If it’s a film, then it may get a theatrical release, or go straight to streaming – there are plenty of options such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+.
If it’s a series, it would likely go to Channel 4, as E4 was the network of the original show, but that’s assuming that the rights are with this channel.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
But that’s not always the case for revivals. For example, the 90s version of Gladiators was on ITV, but the 2020s edition is on the BBC.
Once it’s confirmed whether The Inbetweeners revival will be a TV series, film or stage show, we should know more about how to watch it.
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