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The 'Burbs Creator Celeste Hughey on Forging Ahead, Honoring The Past

Celeste Hughey (Palme Royale) spoke with us about putting a modern spin on the '80s classic The 'Burbs as a series, Keke Palmer, and more.

When Celeste Hughey (Palme Royale) set off to remake The 'Burbs for a new generation, naturally, you might think there would be challenges ahead in updating a nearly 40-year-old story and building off of what director Joe Dante and writer Dana Olsen created in one of Tom Hanks' earliest hits when it was released in 1989. As we move on from Hanks and Carrie Fisher's Ray and Carol Peterson from the original film, we enter new homeowners Samira (Keke Palmer) and Rob Fisher (Jack Whitehall), as they acclimate themselves into the neighborhood when they encounter a mysterious home with equally mysterious occupants, who might have something to hide while keeping the locals anxious. Like Ray, Samira suspects something might be off with her new neighbor, Gary (Justin Kirk), and recruits her more friendly neighbors, like Lynn (Julia Duffy), Dana (Paula Pell), and Tod (Mark Proksch) to keep an eye out. Hughey spoke to Bleeding Cool about how she was trusted by executive producer Seth MacFarlane and holdovers in co-EPs Brian Grazer and Olsen to act as a steward to the new series and update with a new set of original characters, embracing the chemistry of the series' leads in Palmer and Whitehall, building her ensemble cast, and balancing the old with the new. The following contains major spoilers on cameos.

The 'Burbs Creator on Creating a Standalone Series That Also Pays Homage to the Original 1989 Film

What inspired you to revisit The 'Burbs, and how did you want to approach this world almost 40 years later?

Yeah, so I was lucky enough to be brought in by Seth MacFarlane, who was a huge fan of the original movie, and Brian Grazer, who produced the original movie. I was approached to develop it as a series, and immediately, it seemed like a great place to start. The movie is iconic, such a cult classic, and has so much great material that resonates with modern audiences still to this day. We've all been the nosy neighbor; we've all peered out, watched, and come up with theories about the people who live around us. We all have neighbors, we all love to hate them or love to love them, and so I felt like a great place to start a whole new story with new characters.

What made Keke and Jack the perfect gateway characters into this new series?

Exactly, so Keke Palmer is the absolute best, and she was who I originally saw from the get-go as her star. When we met Jack, we did a chemistry read with them. Jack had Keke giggling. It was such a natural dynamic. They made each other laugh, and you'll see that throughout this season, the moments where they're ad-libbing, playing off of each other, are the best part of their connection as a couple.

How did the rest of the cast come together with Julia, Paula, Mark, and Kapil [Talwalkar?

We were so lucky to assemble this all-star team of comedy legends. I worked with Julia Duffy on Palm Royale. Her character, Mary, was always my favorite to write for, and so when I was developing Lynn, she was exactly who I had in mind. Paula, obviously, is the best on SNL, Girls5eva, and in Dying for Sex; she made me cry. Mark is just as iconic as Colin Robinson [from What We Do in the Shadows]. It was exciting to give these characters to these comedic actors who are versatile enough to play both the funny and the emotional sides. They were all excited to be able to do that.

Did Dana [Olsen] and Joe [Dante] play any part in helping to recreate that world for you for that framework, or is it something you went on your own?

Dana was a co-executive producer of the show. He read the script and was a fan, so that was really exciting, and I named Paula Pell's character Dana after him. Joe wasn't involved, but he made such an incredible movie to build from, and there's some homage to his beautiful shots in the show as well.

How did you want to balance the old with the new? I definitely loved the way you used Tom Hanks in there with his cameos, and got in Wendy [Schaal] and Corey [Feldman], and I was wondering how you went about that?

Yeah, it's important for me for a movie that's so beloved to make sure that the original fans feel like it was in good hands. I wanted to make some iconic scenes, like the sardine scene, were in it and other Easter eggs, whether it's the Fisher name after Carrie Fisher, or even a specific moment with the leaves rustling around Keke's feet, and even the opening of zooming into the Earth. I wanted to make those nods to the movie throughout so fans could feel really seen, but also build an entirely new story with new characters that felt fresh.

The 'Burbs is available to stream on Peacock.

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