Will Ferrell’s Star-Studded Series Officially Returning With New Episodes 6 Years After Abrupt Cancellation

Published Sep 8, 2026, 2:02 PM EDT

Based on the Funny or Die web series of the same name and described as an educational sitcom, Drunk History premiered on Comedy Central in July 2013. Each episode features an intoxicated narrator, joined by creator and host Derek Waters, who struggles to talk about a historical event. He's helped by actors — some of whom are very well-known — as they play out the narrator's version of events.

Drunk History included the executive producing team of Will Ferrell and Adam McKay, and featured several celebrity guests like Ryan Gosling, Bob Odenkirk, Jack Black, and Jason Momoa. It received 12 nominations at the Emmys, including one win in the Outstanding Costumes category, but the series had its renewal reversed and was ultimately cancelled in August 2020. According to reporting at the time, the decision came down to COVID-19 production delays and Comedy Central's pivot away from live-action in favor of adult animation.

Drunk History will soon be making its way back online, as Comedy Central has announced that the Emmy-winning show will return with three new short-form episodes starting Tuesday, September 15. The episodes will be available on Comedy Central's YouTube channel. Like the original's run, there will be familiar faces involved.

As the Madonna biopic has continued to stall, the first episode of Drunk History's return spotlights the Queen of Pop's game-changing performance of her song "Like a Virgin" at the first MTV Music Awards. Meghan Trainor will portray the Madonna role. Other episodes will swing back to political history, namely the subject of Frances Perkins and how she helped to formulate FDR's New Deal. Then, swinging again in another direction, it'll also look at how two men attempt to create the world's largest ball of twine.

In terms of casting and narration, the upcoming episodes will feature Lisa Gilroy, Patton Oswalt, and Marisha Ray as narrators. Steve Agee, Tim Baltz, Seth Green, Colin Hanks, Jack McBrayer, Chris Parnell, Johnny Pemberton, Daryl Sabara, Mae Whitman, and “Weird Al” Yankovic are among the performers slated to appear, continuing Drunk History's run of famous guests.

The news of Drunk History's return drew reactions from Ari Pearce, EVP and Head of Original Content at Comedy Central, as well as franchise creator Derek Waters, both of whom touched on the original's run and how they look forward to continuing it with these upcoming short-form episodes. Their statements are below:

Pearce: “We are thrilled that Drunk History is back. These new episodes reflect our heritage as both the home of iconic comedy franchises and a premier launchpad for comedic talent. As we continue to expand our reach across platforms, Drunk History is a great example of how we’re delivering Comedy Central to fans in new ways.”

Waters: “Drunk History has and will always be about informing the audience of History we may not have heard of but should have. History used to be a thing of our past but it’s slowly becoming our future. We need to learn from our history but we also need to be laughing right now. We hope these new stories do both for our long-awaited audience.”

There is no word yet on the future of Drunk History beyond these three installments, but it's welcome news for a fan-favorite Emmy winner that arrived at an abrupt end.

Release Date 2007 - 2011-00-00

Network YouTube

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