For years, FX was the home of the bizarre niche comedy Louie. The show only ever worked because of the comedic talents of Louis C.K., who created the show. He served as writer, director, actor, and standup comic for the series, so there’s no Louie without Louis C.K. Unfortunately for Louie fans, C.K. isn’t particularly interested in more episodes. Here's what he had to say in a recent interview:
I think the guy that I played on the show – the just-divorced kinda underwater dad/struggling New York comic – I don’t think I have stories for that guy anymore. But the show is autobiographical, so what [FX president and general manager] John Landgraf and I have always thought is that it may come back with a different set of stories from a different angle a little further down the road. And I don’t know where that’s from yet so it just depends on if it writes.
Louis C.K.’s explanation to THR about why he may not have any more material for Louie is a bummer, but it does make sense. Louie was unfailingly funny in its five seasons, but the status quo of the premise may not have been able to carry on much longer without getting stale. It’s better for Louis C.K. to call it quits on Louie for now than to stretch the series to the point that there’s just not enough humor left.
FX president John Landgraf has given Louis C.K. leeway on Louie, and a return to the project is possible. The network has had enough success with Louie that more episodes would almost certainly be welcome, so knowing that Louis C.K. isn’t being pressured for more episodes may mean that he’ll be inclined to come back to FX at a later date for a continuation.
Of course, this isn’t the first time that FX has given Louis C.K. plenty of leeway when it comes to producing new material. Louis C.K. has openly admitted that smoking pot completely altered how Season 5 unfolded. Season 5 ended up with a shortened episode count due to a lack of budget after C.K. argued for the production schedule to be moved up. Season 5 wasn’t any less entertaining for being shorter, but getting a few more episodes to tide us over now that a Season 6 isn’t in the works would have been nice.
The news that Louis C.K. isn’t interested in more Louie anytime soon does not come as a huge surprise. C.K. took a break from Louie due to scheduling, and then John Landgraf revealed that C.K. hadn’t promised any more seasons to come. His explanation of why Louie is done for now can at least help us to stop wondering.
Luckily, Louie coming to an end doesn’t mean that Louis C.K.’s brand of humor is gone from the airwaves. He had a hand in the creation of the Zach Galifianakis FX series Baskets, and he stars in a web series called Horace and Pete with Steve Buscemi and Alan Alda. To see what shows you’ll be able to watch that don’t feature Louis C.K., check out our summer TV premiere schedule.
