Hulu is doubling down on its comedy content. After greenlighting new seasons of hit shows like Only Murders in the Building and The Bear, the streamer is renewing its commitment to comedy titles once again. On Thursday, Hulu renewed This Fool for a second season set to run 10 episodes, Deadline confirmed. The renewal comes three months after the Chris Estrada-led comedy series dropped its 10-episode debut season on the platform.
Described by the streamer as an “irreverent, cinematic half-hour comedy,” This Fool is set in working-class South Central Los Angeles. It centers on Estrada’s Julio Lopez, who still lives at home, has been dating his girlfriend on and off since high school, and finds any excuse to avoid dealing with his own problems. Julio works at Hugs Not Thugs, a gang rehabilitation non-profit, where he butts heads with his older cousin Luis, a fresh out of prison ex-gang member who has moved in with Julio and his family. Along with Estrada, This Fool stars Frankie Quiñones, Laura Patalano as Julio’s mother Esperanza, Michelle Ortiz as his girlfriend Maggie, Julia Vera as his grandmother Maria, and Michael Imperioli as his boss Minister Payne.
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News of the series’ renewal comes as little surprise. While viewership data for the show hasn’t been released, This Fool‘s debut season was met with high critical acclaim, so much so that Season 1 earned a rare 100% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 91% audience score. Writing for Vulture, Kathryn VanArendonk wrote, “although streaming comedies haven’t yet settled on an ideal number of total seasons, a just world would give us several more years of This Fool.” TIME Magazine‘s Judy Berman wrote, “the show’s grounding in a neighborhood and a culture, with dialogue shifting fluidly between English and Spanish, keeps it from ever feeling like something we’ve seen before.” Meanwhile, Diego Peralta dubbed the show “one of the year’s funniest comedies” in their review for The Spool.
This Fool is written and executive produced by Estrada, Pat Bishop, Jake Weisman and Matt Ingebretson. Jonathan Groff and Fred Armisen also executive produce. Season 1 is available for streaming on Hulu. A tentative release date for Season 2 has yet to be announced. The series is part of Hulu’s growing comedy lineup that includes other hit shows like Only Murders in the Building, The Great, The Bear, and How I Met Your Father, all of which have also been renewed. Hulu is set to further expand its comedy library in 2023 with the premiers of The Other Black Girl and History of the World Part II.
