It’s been nearly 42 years since Mel Brooks’ classic parody of humankind’s story, History of the World Part I, hit theaters, and now, its sequel is finally almost here.
Now an eight-part television series instead of a film, each episode of History of the World Part II will feature a variety of sketches that take us through different periods of human history. Starring Brooks, Wanda Sykes, Nick Kroll, and Ike Barinholtz, Part II promises to cover the building of the pyramids, the American Civil War, the Russian Revolution, and much, much more.
Entertainment Weekly debuted the exclusive first look at the Hulu comedy below. In one first-look photo, Nick Kroll poses as the fictional character Schmuck Mudman, while Sykes and Barinholtz offer up takes on real historical figures in these stills. Sykes plays Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman to be elected to the United States Congress, and Barinholtz plays Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky.
The 1981 film, which featured Brooks in multiple roles, started by poking fun at horny cavemen in the Stone Age before ultimately tackling the Old Testament, Roman Empire, Spanish Inquisition, and French Revolution. It also starred Sid Caesar, Shecky Greene, Gregory Hines, Charlie Callas, Ron Carey, Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn, Harvey Korman, Cloris Leachman, Andreas Voutsinas, and Spike Milligan.
Despite the fact a sequel was never actually planned for — its title was instead a play on Sir Walter Raleigh’s tome The History of the World, Volume 1 — the film ended with a fake teaser that promised “Hitler on Ice,” “a Viking funeral,” and Star Wars parody “Jews in Space” in a second part. It’s unclear if any of those sketches will make their way into Part II, but the still of Sykes, Barinholtz, and Kroll providing commentary at an ice rink certainly seems like a nod to the former.
Brooks, who wrote and directed the original film, serves as writer and executive producer on the series along with Kroll, Sykes, Barinholtz, David Stassen, Kevin Salter, David Greenbaum, and Christie Smith. It is a production of Searchlight Television and 20th Television.
History of the World Part II will stream on Hulu March 6, 2023.
Reprinted from Entertainment Weekly: LINK