‘Girls’ fans react to revival news: “I want quality, not nostalgia bait”

Lena Dunham has confirmed that her beloved drama Girls is set to be revived for a limited-series.

Dunham announced the news of the sequel via a fake Zoom call that featured former stars, with Allison Williams (Marnie), Jemima Kirke (Jessa), Zosia Mamet (Shoshanna) and Andrew Rannells (Elijah) all set to reprise their roles.

“We always said we would only return to Girls if there was a specific story we were burning to tell,” Dunham said in a statement. “I’ve missed these characters, but for a long time I couldn’t quite picture them in the present day. Then, right around my 40th birthday, they started talking to me in the shower. And, as you may remember, once this fivesome starts talking it’s pretty hard to get them to stop.”

Guess who’s back, back again…#GIRLS, created by and starring Lena Dunham, will return to HBO Max for five new episodes. pic.twitter.com/9GLJw3s4SO

— HBO Max (@hbomax) October 13, 2026

“It’s rare that you get the chance to return to something that changed your life with the gift of hindsight and a whole new level of gratitude and understanding,” she added. “I love these girls (and boy), our friends at HBO, and all the people who have continued to discover the show and remind us afresh why we do this, which is the joy of being together… and the chance to wear yellow mesh.”

Girls ran for five seasons between 2012 and 2017. The new limited series will span five episodes and will start production next summer. “We’re thrilled to have Lena turn her gaze from the tumult of one’s 20s to the milestone of turning 40,” Amy Gravitt, executive vice president of HBO programming, said in a statement.

“To say the world has changed since we last saw Hannah, Marnie, Shoshanna, Jessa, and Elijah is a massive understatement, but we know fans – old and new – will be happy to see how they’ve grown and relieved to see that they’re still the Girls we knew way back when.”

The news has been met with mixed reactions from fans. “Not sure I like this. Girls was special because it took place during a very short span in a woman’s life; her twenties. I feel like it’s just going to be depressing seeing where everyone ended up, just like how all revivals are depressing… And Just Like That, I’m talking about you,” wrote one user on Reddit. “As a tired old millennial, I don’t care to see their current tired old millennial lives. Let’s keep it as it was,” added another.

Everyone is asking, Who on earth wants a Girls revival? Me. I loved the original and want to watch the characters give vent to their fullest 40-year-old selves, however unlikable or grotesque. I might be an audience of one but I doubt it. https://t.co/1MftwPsOIp

— Amanda Fortini (@amandafortini) October 14, 2026

“I’m literally nauseous with excitement,” wrote one more optimistic fan. “God is coming back to write more chapters of The Bible,” said another.

“Everyone is asking ‘Who on earth wants a Girls revival?’ Me. I loved the original and want to watch the characters give vent to their fullest 40-year-old selves, however unlikable or grotesque. I might be an audience of one but I doubt it,” added a third. “I want quality and not nostalgia bait,” explained another Reddit user.

However Adam Driver, who played Dunham’s sometimes-love interest, hasn’t been announced for the Girls revival.

In her 2026 memoir Famesick, Dunham made a series of allegations about Driver’s behaviour on set, including claims that he threw a chair while they were practising lines together and punched a hole in the wall of his trailer. Driver has ignored requests for comment about the allegations.

The post ‘Girls’ fans react to revival news: “I want quality, not nostalgia bait” appeared first on NME.

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