The reboot of fan-favorite ’80s sitcom Perfect Strangers will see Robin Thede (A Black Lady Sketch Show) and London Hughes (Fleabag) in the starring roles. Thede will also write the script for HBO Max’s comedy and serve as an executive producer.
The project, which is currently in developing stages, is imagined as a multi-camera, half-hour sitcom. It will revolve around two strangers, Deja (Thede) and Poppy (Hughes), who discover they are half-sisters after both inheriting the same apartment in Brooklyn. Despite being “polar opposites,” the two decide to move in together and now have to learn how to live with each other.
The Perfect Strangers reboot represents the continuation of the fruitful relationship between Thede and HBO. Besides creating the Emmy-nominated A Black Lady Sketch Show for the network, Thede also serves as a judge on reality competition series Haute Dog on HBO Max and has made an appearance in HBO’s comedy-drama Insecure.
The original Perfect Strangers premiered in 1986 on ABC and followed an unlikely roommate coupling between Midwestern American Larry (Mark Linn-Baker) and his distant cousin Balki (Bronson Pinchot), who grew up as a shepherd on a small Mediterranean island. The sitcom ran for eight seasons and 150 episodes between 1986 and 1993.
