Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld's Friendship Formed the Basis for What 'Seinfeld' Would Become
Published Nov. 2 2021, 2:13 p.m. ET
The brainchild of Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, Seinfeld is undoubtedly one of the most successful primetime television shows to ever exist. Despite ending over 23 years ago, it still holds a cult-like status amongst fans today and is continually being discovered by new viewers.
Of course, the show wouldn't exist without the joint efforts of Larry and Jerry, who brought their concept for a "show about nothing" to fruition. With that being said, are Larry and Jerry still friends years after their work together on Seinfeld came to an end? Here's what we know about where they stand with one another today.
Are Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld still friends today?
From all accounts, it appears that Larry and Jerry are still friends today. Although the two don't really interact online, there have been a few instances that prove that their decades-long friendship is still going strong.
One of the biggest was when Larry appeared on Jerry's hit interview program Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee back in 2012. In that episode, Larry joined Jerry for a ride in a vintage Volkswagen Beetle. Throughout the course of the episode, the two reminisce on their work together on Seinfeld, discuss their current lives, and crack plenty of jokes along the way.
Outside of that recorded instance, there aren't many other recent moments where Larry and Jerry have interacted in the public eye. That doesn't mean that they aren't friends, however, as Larry has noted at different moments that he draws from his relationship with Jerry when it comes to writing material for Curb Your Enthusiasm.
Larry and Jerry's friendship has endured decades of hard work in the entertainment industry.
Larry and Jerry becoming friends and working together is truly the definition of a match made in heaven. In Jennifer Keishin Armstong's book, Seinfeldia: The Secret World of the Show About Nothing That Changed Everything, she touched on the moment when the two knew that there was special chemistry that they should tap into.
"Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld first noted their comedic affinity for each other when Seinfeld read some comedic material David had ‘gifted’ a friend, Carol Leifer, for her birthday," Jennifer wrote. "David — nearly broke — had given Leifer some jokes as a birthday 'gift.' Too drunk to read them aloud, she handed them off to Seinfeld; he killed, which suggested some creative potential between the two men."
Their mutual love of mocking the mundane blossomed into the framework for Seinfeld, which helped turn Jerry from a struggling comedian into a bonafide television star. For Jerry, Seinfeld presented an opportunity to work on a project near and dear to his heart instead of contributing to other television shows such as The Tonight Show.
There have been some less-than-ideal moments between the two in the past.
It has become apparent over the years that Jerry and Larry are about as similar as they are different. The two stars have certainly butted heads on a variety of things, but none of it has gotten in the way of their friendship. For one, Larry has said on multiple occasions that he doesn't understand why Seinfeld is so popular, while Jerry has been very confident about its impact pretty much since the beginning.
There were even points when Larry wanted to quit working on the show. Believe it or not, Seinfeld wasn't always universally beloved. Its first two seasons had lackluster reviews, and there were even talks of cancellation at one point, but luckily that didn't happen as fans began to truly love the concept behind the show and its timeless catchphrases became cemented in pop culture.
Nonetheless, problems persisted here and there, and between a mix of disagreements with NBC and him just being tired of working on the show, Larry departed his role on Seinfeld for the show's final few seasons. He eventually did return to help with the series finale, and as a co-creator, he still makes millions off of its syndication.
Larry and Jerry seem to be on good terms these days. When Larry began working on Curb Your Enthusiasm, which has gone on to outlast Seinfeld and be his biggest project since that show, he tapped his former Seinfeld costars, including Jerry, to take part in a special crossover episode.
It's clear that despite Larry's hot and cold feelings regarding Seinfeld, he still respects what he and Jerry created together as well as the friendship that came out of it.
