‘The ‘Burbs’: Everything To Know About Keke Palmer And Seth MacFarlane’s Series Based On The Tom Hanks Movie

Much has been made about the lack of studio movies that get released in theaters anymore. So you have to treasure the ones that do, like the delightful One of Them Days, starring Keke Palmer and SZA, and the upcoming Good Fortune, with Keanu Reeves, Aziz Ansari, Seth Rogen, Sandra Oh, and, well, Keke Palmer. She’s the charismatic queen of theatrical comedy!

Speaking of, one of Palmer’s upcoming projects is starring in an adaptation of The ‘Burbs, Joe Dante’s 1989 dark-comedy film with Tom Hanks. Will you be watching the Peacock series? The answer better not be “nope.”

Here’s everything we know about The ‘Burbs.

Plot

In the original horror-tinged comedy from Gremlins genius Joe Dante), Tom Hanks plays a suburbanite who begins to suspect his new neighbors of… MURDER. The Peacock adaptation tweaks the premise by following a couple, seemingly played by Keke Palmer and Jack Whitehall, who move into the husband’s childhood home. As per the logline, “What starts as a typical suburban life quickly unravels as new neighbors arrive with explosive secrets.”

Peacock’s The ‘Burbs (as I’ll call it from now on to avoid confusion) is being written by Celeste Hughley, while Seth MacFarlane and Brian Grazer are attached as executive producers. Dante does not appear to be involved, but Dana Olsen, who wrote the original screenplay, is a co-executive producer.

In a 35th anniversary retrospective with Paste about The ‘Burbs, Dante discussed the film underperforming at the box office before becoming a cult classic. “It does seem to have quite a following, and it was apparent even at the time,” he said. “I’d go to the dentist and they’d say ‘Oh, you made The ‘Burbs? I love that picture!’ But in the meantime, you’re sort of feeling that you’re in movie jail because the reviews are so bad.”

As for MacFarlane, besides his admittedly light involvement with Family Guy and American Dad, he’s also producing another reimagining of a classic comedy: Naked Gun.

Cast

Besides Tom Hanks, The ‘Burbs also starred Bruce Dern, Carrie Fisher, Rick Ducommun, Corey Feldman, Wendy Schaal, Henry Gibson, and Gale Gordon, of Lucy: A Tribute fame. The cast of Peacock’s The ‘Burbs includes Keke Palmer, Jack Whitehall, Julia Duffy, the always-hilarious Paula Pell, Kapil Talwalkar, and Mark Proksch (Colin Robinson from What We Do in the Shadows), who, come to think of it, would make a good Mr. Mooney in the inevitable I Love Lucy reboot.

Release Date

Stay tuned for a premiere date.

Trailer

There’s no footage from Peacock’s The Burbs yet, but you can watch the trailer for The Burbs: the movie below.