John Mulaney Is Coming Back to Netflix in a New Variety Special

We may be a little biased but we think it's safe to call John Mulaney the king of Netflix. He's now up to three stand-up specials, a hit TV show, and a screening of his Broadway show all on the streaming platform. But John's not done yet. The comedian, writer, actor, and producer is coming back to Netflix for a comedy special that will look a little different from everything he's created for the platform so far. 

The upcoming John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch is one part Big Mouth, one part Oh Hello!, one part Saturday Night Live, and all parts John Mulaney.

If you think that the name of John's upcoming special sounds more like the name of an acapella group, you're kind of on the right track. According to a press release from Netflix, the show hopes to "recapture the magic of that bygone television era when children sang songs about their feelings with celebrity guests on funky outdoor sets." 

The show stars John as well as a group of children aged 8 to 13 who perform songs and comedy sketches about life and children's musings. In addition to the comedian and the kids, special guest stars will take part, including Richard Kind, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Tony Award Winner Andre De Shields.

The special features nine original songs written by Eli Bolin, who has composed music for Sesame Street and Documentary Now!. But the show itself was written by John, in partnership with Marika Sawyer, who he started working with in 2008 on Saturday Night Live. John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch is being directed by Rhys Thomas, who worked with John on The Comeback Kid and Saturday Night Live.

Despite being a regular on stage and screen, this is John's first time doing a comedy special that's not actually filmed on stage in front of a live audience. Instead, the show is filmed in several locations, including an "Urban Garden" designed by Damage Studios, which also designs sets for Saturday Night Live.

While we all will get to see John in the upcoming special, other fans will get the opportunity to see him perform live this winter. While he himself is not on tour right now, his good friend Pete Davidson is and he's co-headlining two shows in Florida on Dec. 8 and 9. Which is making us very jealous of Floridians right now.

For those of us who can't see The Comeback Kid's comeback live on stage, we'll have to settle for a variety show that will have John and 15 kids tackling existential questions. Which, to be fair, sounds like an excellent trade off. The variety special John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch will drop on Netflix on Dec. 24, just in time for you to question the meaning of life this holiday season.