Jerry Seinfeld's show with Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee has taken on a higher profile since migrating to the streaming giant known as Netflix. And while the series has experienced even greater success lately, it has also been hit with a lawsuit. But from the sound of things, the comedy juggernaut Jerry Seinfeld is not too worried about it. In a new interview, Jerry Seinfeld has this to say about the pending lawsuit:
I don't know if you remember my TV series; a friend of mine sued me for $100 million that I took the whole idea from him. It's a guy who lives in Queens. ... When we did Bee Movie, there was guy who said, 'I was going to do a movie about bees, so you owe us everything.' It's unfortunate when it's a ...friend, and they decide to go for the money instead ... That's not the nicest moment, but I'm used to it.
The lawsuit regarding Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee was filed back in February by Christian Charles. Jerry Seinfeld's response regarding the lawsuit in his interview with Associated Press (via ABC News) follows along the lines of the statement his lawyer issued in the wake of the lawsuit's filing. In the lawsuit, Charles alleges that he originally pitched the premise of the series to Seinfeld back in 2002, which Seinfeld turned him down on at the time.
Fast forward nine years later to 2011 and Christian Charles alleges that Jerry Seinfeld got back in touch with him regarding the concept. Charles also says he helped shoot the pilot. As part of the lawsuit, Charles is asking for a "Created By" credit, along with financial reimbursement. The series initially streamed on Crackle before heading over to Netflix as part of a massive deal between Seinfeld and the streamer.
The show follows Jerry Seinfeld and a celebrity guest as they chat during a car ride out to eventually sit down and enjoy some coffee. During the show's run, Seinfeld has hosted a lot of stars. He has recently hosted Jim Carrey, The Tonight Show's Jimmy Fallon, and Daily Show host Trevor Noah among others. The episodes range in duration from 10 to 20 minutes, although some have been longer and some have been shorter.
So how does the comedian say Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee came about? Well, according to Jerry Seinfeld, it sparked when he was working on another show and gained an interesting perspective on editing. Here is how Seinfeld says the idea for the show came into being:
It really started when I was doing the show called The Marriage Ref, which we came up with about 10, 11 years ago and it was celebrities trying to help regular people with their marriage. And so, we were shooting these things and we made a few of them. And I found that I could edit the conversation to make it funnier, that I could go into an edit and I could take 20 minutes of conversation and make it 20 minutes that was just OK and make it 10 minutes that was really funny.
Known and beloved for its laid-back take on the interview format, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee has found a devoted following. The show has been a great "vehicle" for the comic (pun fully intended), as Jerry Seinfeld uses classic cars as the setting for a lot of his conversation with fellow celebrities. That is until they arrive for that much-talked-about coffee. New episodes of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee are available to stream on Netflix.
For new and returning television shows you can anticipate watching over the next couple months, check out CinemaBlend's guide to TV's summer premieres. For other entertainment set to stream on Netflix this year, check out our 2018 Netflix premiere rundown and when you are done with that, our guide to Amazon Prime's premiere schedule.
