Home TV

Netflix may not be making a second season of your favorite series, but it will fund two new comedy specials

If we don't laugh, we cry.

Phillip Faraone/Getty Images

In the wake of cancelling a string of its original content as of late, Netflix has greenlit two standup special shows for comedian Taylor Tomlinson. Per Variety, the streaming service will premiere Tomlinson’s first special sometime in 2024, with her taped standup show in Washington, D.C. being used for the upcoming title. 

Recommended Videos

It will mark Tomlinson’s third and fourth special for Netflix, having made her debut on the streamer with her hour-long standup show Quarter-Life Crisis in 2020, followed by Look at You last year. The comedian is currently touring her “Have It All Tour” throughout the U.S., with much of the material focusing on her life at the cusp of turning 30. 

“I’m a pretty personal comedian,” Tomlinson said in a statement to Variety. “I’m not super topical or political. I am generally writing about things happening in my own life, in what I hope is a very relatable way.”

Tomlinson adds to a slew of fellow comedians who will showcase their standup specials on Netflix in 2024, with the streaming giant due to host and release its second Netflix Is A Joke Fest in May of next year. The comedy festival held its inaugural event last year, with standup sets by the likes of Amy Schumer, Dave Chappelle, John Mulaney, and Amy Poehler made streamable on Netflix in April. 

Elsewhere, in what will be his third Netflix special, Ricky Gervais’ standup show Ricky Gervais: Armageddon will likewise premiere on the streaming service next year, following fellow comedy legend Chris Rock’s Chris Rock: Selective Outrage, which hit Netflix screens earlier this month and ascended the site’s charts following last year’s Oscars slap.    

Netflix’s glut of comedy specials comes amid somewhat of an absence in its other original content, having cancelled 14 fantasy shows as of December 2022. These included Warrior Nun, and the Sherlock Holmes spinoff The Irregulars, as well as First Kill, Fate: The Winx Saga, The Imperfects, and The Midnight Club, among many others. 

Adding to that list of cancellations are those Netflix shows axed after one season, including titles like The Get Down, Gypsy, The Good Cop, and Girlboss, among others. While no one should scoff at the streamer’s desire to bring the laughs, one can only wonder whether Netflix’s efforts could reap more diverse rewards when focused on continuing fan-favorite shows. On the plus side, we did get a taste of Netflix’s comic book prowess with the release of Sweet Tooth’s season two trailer earlier this week.