Plan for female-led US 'Peep Show' remake irks fans

A female-led remake of the cult British sitcom Peep Show is in development, but fans on social media think it’s a terrible idea.

The original show ran for nine series between 2003 and 2015, with David Mitchell and Robert Webb as dysfunctional, co-dependent London flatmates.

It became famous for its trademark, point of view style and the use of the lead characters’ internal monologues in voice-over.

Read more: Mitchell and Webb reunite for Back

Writing in The Guardian over the weekend, co-creator Sam Bain revealed that “top comedy brain” Karey Dornetto is working on a script for the remake over at the Disney-owned FX Networks.

Dornetto is best known for her work as a writer on a number of critically acclaimed American sitcoms with a cult appeal, including Community and Arrested Development.

The reaction on social media to the news has been less than positive, with fans of female-led comedy expressing their desire for “something new” to be made instead of rehashing an old property.

This is not the first attempt to revamp Peep Show for an American audience, with Fox shooting a pilot in 2005.

Johnny Galecki, prior to his role as Leonard in The Big Bang Theory, played the equivalent of Mitchell’s character.

Spike TV also took a crack at the show shortly after, but never made it to series, and Starz abandoned a potential remake in 2016.

Read more: Fans say goodbye to Big Bang Theory

American remakes of British shows have historically fallen flat, with The Inbetweeners binned after just one season and The IT Crowd also subject to a failed pilot.

The Office, starring Steve Carell, stands as a rare example of a British format being successfully revamped Stateside.

During its original run, Peep Show won a number of awards, including several BAFTAs and a British Comedy Award.

Read more: Colman crowned with Oscar glory

Alongside Mitchell and Webb, the series also gave recurring roles to future Oscar winner Olivia Colman, comedian Isy Suttie, Paterson Joseph and Matt King as the drug-addled DJ Super Hans.

Co-creators Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain have since gone their separate ways, with the former creating media satire Succession in the US and Bain unveiling his new feature film Corporate Animals at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.