Lena Dunham Is Officially Reviving ‘Girls’ at HBO, and Most of the Original Cast Is Back
Few shows defined a decade of television conversation quite like ‘Girls’. It divided critics, launched careers and made a whole generation argue about Hannah Horvath over brunch. Almost 10 years after it signed off, the voice of a generation is getting one more turn.
HBO announced on Tuesday that it is reviving ‘Girls’ for a limited run of 5 episodes. Creator and star Lena Dunham will return alongside Allison Williams, Jemima Kirke, Zosia Mamet and Andrew Rannells, with production set to begin in 2027. It marks a decade since the sixth and final season wrapped.
The news is a notable reversal. In 2022, HBO said there were no plans to bring the series back, and Dunham said at the time that the moment was not right. Now both sides have changed their minds, and the show that ran from 2012 to 2017 is returning as a short, focused revival.
Dunham returns as Hannah Horvath, the aspiring writer at the center of the story. Williams plays Marnie Michaels, Kirke plays Jessa Johansson and Mamet plays Shoshanna Shapiro, while Rannells reprises Elijah Krantz. Variety notes that all 4 core cast members are returning.
Judd Apatow, who executive produced the original, is back, joined by Dunham and by Ilene S. Landress and Michael P. Cohen of Dunham’s Good Thing Going banner. Williams, Kirke, Mamet and Rannells will serve as co-executive producers. Dunham will also write and direct the new episodes.
Two notable names are absent from the announcement. Adam Driver, who played Hannah’s on-and-off boyfriend, is not mentioned among the returning cast. Jenni Konner, the original series’ co-showrunner and executive producer, was not named in the press release, and Deadline reported that she is not returning.
Both were discussed in Dunham’s memoir, ‘Famesick’, published in April, which has led to speculation about their absence. Neither has been addressed directly in the announcement. For now, the focus is on the core group.
In a statement, Dunham explained that the group always said they would only come back if there was a specific story they were burning to tell. She said she had missed the characters, but for a long time she could not picture them in the present day. Then, around her 40th birthday, the characters began talking to her in the shower, and once they start, they are hard to stop.
She described the chance to return to something that changed her life as rare, with the gift of hindsight and a new level of gratitude and understanding. She said she loves these girls, along with their friends at HBO and everyone who has continued to discover the show. Her closing line promised the joy of being together and, jokingly, the chance to wear yellow mesh.
HBO’s comedy chief, Amy Gravitt, said the network is thrilled to have Dunham turn her gaze from the tumult of one’s twenties to the milestone of turning 40. That framing suggests the revival will not simply rehash the original premise. Instead, it will check in on characters who are now facing a different stage of life.
The original series followed Hannah and her friends as she navigated her 20s in New York, with messy relationships, uneven careers and plenty of self-discovery. A revival that looks at the same people in midlife offers a natural contrast. It also allows the show to reflect on how its characters, and its audience, have changed.
The cast appeared in a short teaser announcing the reunion, technically playing themselves but acting a lot like their characters. In it, Dunham checks to see whether everyone is willing to return. It is a playful introduction that hints at the tone of the new episodes.
Lena Dunham’s #Girls will officially return with a five episode revival at HBO. https://t.co/CWaxX7wRQw
— Rotten Tomatoes 🍅 (@RottenTomatoes) October 13, 2026
There is no premiere date yet, and HBO has not said when the new episodes will air. All 6 seasons of the original are streaming on HBO Max, which gives newcomers and longtime fans a way to catch up before the revival arrives. With filming not scheduled until 2027, the wait will be a long one.
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