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Another Funny or Die webseries is hitting the TV, and this time it’s Zach Galifianakis’s "Between Two Ferns". The show is an parody series that Zach hosts, where he conducts celebrity interviews in an environment created to intentionally appear low budget. The title? The interview literally takes place between two potted ferns on an otherwise plain stage.

 

As the host, Zach remains in an awkward character, asking his guests odd and sometimes antagonizing questions, such as asking Ben Stiller if he had ever considered following his parents route into comedy. Guests are not prepped ahead of time, so they don’t know what Zach will be throwing at them. Zach has said, “Inappropriateness is really fun to me… that is kind of the take on ‘Between Two Ferns’—inappropriate humor.”

 

The show was originally a short film on the sketch pilot “The Right Now! Show”, but the network passed on the pilot, so they put it up on Funny or Die instead where it found success as an Internet series. Zach has hilariously and uncomfortably hosted such guests as Charlize Theron, Michael Cera, Will Ferrell, Jimmy Kimmel, and Sean Penn. The show is getting its chance to move on up to TV, although its unclear at the moment whether this is a one-time special or a potential recurring series. Either way, it's interesting to see the series come full-circle like this.

 

Producer Scott Aukerman made the announcement of the upcoming show on Monday’s podcast “Comedy Bang Bang”. Having directed a lot of the webisodes, he was an obvious choice to direct the 30-minute TV episode entitled “Between Two Ferns: A Fairy Tale of New York”, which will air May 6 at 8:30 PT on Comedy Central before the network’s Comedy Awards. The first episode includes guests Tina Fey, Jon Stewart, and Sir Richard Branson. 

 

 

- Kate Ferguson, YH Staff