Summary
Freaks and Geeksmay have been canceled 25 years ago, but for executive producer Judd Apatow, the characters are more alive than ever. In fact, Apatow has managed to make his own spiritualFreaks and Geekscinematic universe by reuniting the actors that initially brought the ambitious series to life.
A thinly veiled autobiography of creator Paul Feig’s teenage life,Freaks and Geekscentered around brother and sister, 14-year-old Sam Weird and 16-year-old Lindsay Weir, and the outsider social circles the two run in. Sam has the Geeks, and Lindsay is attempting to reinvent herself as a Freak. Unfortunately for the Weir siblings, that’s as far as they would get thanks toFreaks and Geeks’early cancelation.
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Judd Apatow Uses His Comedy Movies To Continue Freaks & Geeks' Character Stories
Apatow Has Created His Own Cinematic Universe
In 2012, the cast and creators ofFreaks and Geeksspoke withVanity Fairto give an oral history of the doomed TV show. It aired in 1999 to little success, which could be attributed to its erratic episode schedule, as well as conflicts between the creators and NBC.In a separate interview withVanity Fair,Feig revealed that he and Apatow had outlined what would have happened to each character if theshow had been green-lit for a second season— Lindsay would become a human rights lawyer, Daniel would go to jail, Sam would join the drama club, and so forth.
Despite that, thanks to the show’s subversive messaging andthe magnetic young cast ofFreaks and Geeks, its fanbase has only grown. In fact, for Apatow, the story itself continues to grow, so long as he has aFreaks and Geeksalumni in the cast of one of his films. Apatow told Vanity Fair, “Whenever I see an opportunity to use any of the people fromFreaks and Geeks, I do it.“Apatow claimed that he sees his movies as"the continuous adventures of those characters.”
AlthoughFreaks and Geekswas the launching pad for many of the show’s stars — James Franco, Linda Cardellini, andSeth Rogen, for example — Apatow’s insistence that they appear in his comedy movies keeps them firmly rooted to theirFreaks and Geekspast. The little easter eggs Apatow includes are both charming and bittersweet, especially since not every alumnus has taken Apatow up on his offer of returning to their characters — even if it’s only in spirit.
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Not Every Actor Reunites With Apatow
Rogen isn’t the onlyFreaks and Geeksstar to enroll in the “School of Apatow.” Co-stars Jason Segel (Nick Andopolis) and Martin Starr (Bill Haverchuck) appeared in Apatow’s follow-up TV showUndeclared(which also ran for only one season) in 2001. Likewise, Apatow’s wife, Leslie Mann, one of manyfamous actors who made a cameo inFreaks and Geeks, is a frequent star of Apatow’s films. Although Franco (Daniel Desario) does not appear in eitherUndeclaredor any of Apatow’s directorial features, he did star in PineappleExpress(2008) alongside Rogen, which Apatow produced and co-wrote.
Freaks and Geeks Role
Daniel Desario
Pineapple Express (2008)
However, the most notable star to resist the School of Apatow is Linda Cardellini, who played protagonist Lindsay Weir. She reunited with Segel in the 2004 mockumentaryLolliLove, but has overall remained largely separate from her fellowFreaks and Geeksgraduates. It is currently unknown if the School of Apatow is planning yet another expansion to the unofficialFreaks and Geekscinematic universe.
