Larry David and Barack Obama's American history show is deeply cringe

Kelly Lawler, USA TODAYFri, June 26, 2026 at 12:02 PM UTC

0

For Larry David and Barack Obama, history is a laughing matter. And they've got the sketch comedy show to prove it.

Yes, the co-creator of "Seinfeld" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" has teamed up with the 44th president of the United States and what they came up with is this: "Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness," a sketch comedy show about American history, just in time for our 250th anniversary.

Produced by Barack and Michelle Obama, "Unhappiness" (HBO, Fridays, 9 p.m. ET/PT, ★★ out four) places renowned curmudgeon David in sketches about famous American historical moments, from the drafting of the Declaration of Independence to VE Day.

But when it's Larry David writing a historical document, we're going to hear more about the right to have an umbrella to himself than all those silly inalienable rights. Sometimes it's funny. Most of the time, unfortunately, it's just cringey.

Larry David, Barack Obama, co-creators of HBO's "Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness"

Joined by a slew of celebrity friends playing his fellow historical heroes − including (of course) Jerry Seinfeld, Jon Hamm, Richard Kind and Joe Manganiello − David goes on a tour of the past 250 years and is deeply annoyed by every facet of it.

If you like Larry David, you will probably like "Unhappiness." The comedian has a distinct (and somewhat limited) style and repertoire of jokes. Obama's presence is actually pretty insignificant. This is David's showcase, his version of "Drunk History" or "The History of the World" Parts I and II.

Advertisement

Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld in "Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness" on HBO.

But inevitably, this format, silly historical sketch comedy with a modern sensibility, was perfected in "History," a 2013-2019 Comedy Central series that did the exact same thing as "Unhappiness" with a far less famous cast (although Lin-Manuel Miranda did stop by once for an Alexander Hamilton episode). And to be honest, with much sharper and fast-paced humor.

Jon Hamm, Larry David and Sean Hayes in "Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness" on HBO.

"Unhappiness" is desperately slow, from the actual pace and density of the jokes to the achingly long transition between sketches. David plays, essentially, the same character in each sketch, whether that's a Founding Father, Alexander Graham Bell or a WWI soldier.

He insults other people, bothers them, mugs at the camera and doesn't try to do anything new. In one sketch, David as Bell makes the historic first phone call, but the guy on the other end won't shut up. It's a one-trick joke that is more grating to the audience than to David's fictional version of the inventor.

The Obamas and their Higher Ground Productions have tentatively waded into the world of Hollywood with TV and movies, mostly documentaries and children's shows. I would suggest they stick to those genres.

For America's big 250th anniversary, there is a plethora of stories to tell. There will be live celebrations all around the country on July 4, there are dozens of documentaries about how we got here, books to read and patriotic songs to listen to. There is space for us to poke fun at the journey the country has been on over two-and-a-half centuries, which has been rocky to say the least.

But this is the version of that comedy we got stuck with? Well − to borrow a quote from "Seinfeld" − that's a shame.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Larry David, Barack Obama spoof American history in HBO show – Review

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”