Seinfeld might be the most meaningful of all the revivals to be announced if it does happen.
And according to a new statement by Jerry Seinfeld, “Something is going to happen.”
The reports came flying in when the 69-year-old comedian did a stand-up show (seen in this video) in Boston over the weekend and teased the possibility.
In response to an audience member about whether he liked the ending of the series, the Comedian in Cars Getting Coffee host says, “Here’s what I’ll tell you, okay? But you can’t tell anybody… Something is going to happen that has to do with that ending.”
He added, “It hasn’t happened yet.”
The Emmy winner further elaborated he is working with his original collaborator and writer, Larry David, on the possible revival.
And this is not the first time Seinfeld has expressed dismay over the iconic show’s finale.
Jerry Seinfeld hates the ending of Seinfeld
For those who may have forgotten, the legendary show “about nothing” ended on an awkward downer note.
The show’s episodes were not known for their happy endings, but there was still a certain joy in the characters’ misfortunes. Their bittersweet conclusions were hilariously upbeat, from Jerry ruining his expensive suede jacket because of Elaine’s crotchety father to George getting caught pretending to be a latex salesman.
The hour-long finale was full of the typical off-the-wall randomness from a Seinfeld program. Kramer causes a plane to crash, and a bystander gets carjacked while waiting at the airport. But instead of being helpful, the characters laugh about it, provoking an officer to arrest them because they broke a Good Samaritan Law.
This prompts an absurd trial full of familiar faces taking the witness stand, leading to an unfortunate guilty verdict. One of the last shots is a slow pan out of the four legendary characters having small talk behind bars. Resulting in an ending that felt out of step with what came before and anticlimactic, given Seinfeld’s outstanding history.
In 2017, Jerry Seinfeld expressed the same opinion about the ending. While speaking to a crowd at the New Yorker Festival, the famous stand-up comic says, “I sometimes think we really shouldn’t have even done it.” He adds, “There was a lot of pressure on us at that time to do one big last show, but big is always bad in comedy.”
So, how does one revive Seinfeld? And should they revive the series at all?
What we want from a Seinfeld revival
They should absolutely revive the series for one last run to retcon that awful ending. The notorious nature of the 1998 finale does give the show character, but it would be nice to see the crew end up in a more satisfying place.
Even if the finale is not happy, leave the characters in a place where they continue in our minds. That way, when the show ends, in our heads, Kramer is somewhere out there raiding a neighbor’s refrigerator; George Constanza is getting fired for the 900th time, and Elaine is still complaining about The English Patient to strangers.
We need these characters wild and free in New York City, not locked up in prison (or, even worse, killed off). That said, knowing writer Larry David, he might kill them off just to stir up audiences.
A revival will prove tricky in the case of Kramer actor Michael Richards. The comedic talent has not recovered professionally since imploding his career in 2006. Considering the racial slurs he let loose on stage during a stand-up routine, it isn’t easy to imagine his return. That said, Mel Gibson is back in the public eye, so anything is possible.
Chances are the rest of the cast will return, including Julia Louis Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and, of course, Jerry Seinfeld.
The series remains one of the most popular streamed shows on Netflix and can be streamed in its entirety now.
Stay tuned at Monsters and Critics for more updates on the Seinfeld revival.