Pay attention: John Mulaney is making more 'Sack Lunch Bunch' specials (original) (raw)

Published on July 7, 2020 09:15AM EDT

Photo: Jeffrey Neira/Netflix

Do you hear that? The sound of a pen tapping on a paperback book, accompanied by Jake Gyllenhaal having a musical mental breakdown? That, dear friends, is the sound of music, music everywhere, and it can only herald one thing: the return of John Mulaney's charmingly deranged children's variety special, John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch.

Comedy Central announced Tuesday that Mulaney is developing two additional Sack Lunch Bunch specials, one of which will be holiday-themed. The holiday special will reunite the cast of the original, which debuted on Netflix in 2019.

“I was an intern at Comedy Central when I was barely older than the kids in the Sack Lunch Bunch,” Mulaney said in a statement. “I wasn’t a very good intern, so I am psyched they hired me again. We are thrilled to bring these specials to Comedy Central: a place where I have had so many good times.”

Part sketch comedy and part musical spectacular, the original Bunch was one of the year's strangest yet sweetest pop culture offerings, featuring Mulaney and a gaggle of talented children singing about noodles and talking about their darkest fears.

The original also assembled a slew of celebrity guest stars, including Gyllenhaal, David Byrne, André De Shields, Richard Kind, Annaleigh Ashford, and Natasha Lyonne. Presumably, the new specials will have a similarly star-studded lineup, but we'll have to wait and see whether they will ultimately answer the question: Do flowers exist at night?

Related content:

• John Mulaney on why he wanted to work with 'genius' Jake Gyllenhaal: 'He’s out of his mind'
• Behind John Mulaney’s 24-hour race to get David Byrne for a Sack Lunch Bunch cameo
• John Mulaney is putting on his best Mister Rogers shoes for Netflix special Sack Lunch Bunch