Showtime’s Drama About the ’70s Stand-Up Comedy Scene is Back

Showtime’s I’m Dying Up Here taps into all the seedy exploits that come to mind when we think of the 1970s: sex, drugs, and…stand-up comedy.

The drama series about the 1970s L.A. comedy scene is back with an I’m Dying Up Here season 2 trailer. And it looks like it’s as dramatic as ever.

I’m Dying Up Here follows several aspiring comedians in the ’70s L.A. comedy scene, at the shift to a new era of comedy. Stand-up comedy became bold, raw, and personal, with comedians divulging painfully private stories for laughs as well as making jabs at the country’s political turmoil. The series is produced by Jim Carrey and partially based on his life, during the time period that Carrey calls the “Big Bang” of comedy.

“Comics are the last line of defense,” Carrey told Variety last year. “We tell them the truth and we make something beautiful out of it.”

Each of the aspiring comedians in I’m Dying Up Here, played by Ari Graynor, Clark Duke, Michael Angarano, RJ Cyler, Andrew Santino, Erik Griffin, Al Madrigal and Jake Lacy, have shades of Carrey’s long career in them. The close-knit group of comedians are mentored by Melissa Leo’s Goldie, a cocky comedy owner. Bringing this story to the screen was a “labor of love,” Carrey said.

The first season aired in the summer of 2017 and was renewed for a 10-episode second season.

Here is the synopsis to I’m Dying Up Here:

I’M DYING UP HERE delves into the inspired, damaged and complicated psyches of a fictional group of competitive but close-knit comedians mentored by Goldie (Leo), a brassy comedy club owner who rules over her business with an iron fist but nurtures her comedians with tough love. The series takes viewers behind the curtain of the comedy scene that birthed the careers of legends such as Richard Pryor, Robin Williams and David Letterman, showing there’s truly no such thing as an easy laugh. The cast includes Melissa Leo, Ari Graynor, Clark Duke, Michael Angarano, RJ Cyler, Andrew Santino, Erik Griffin, Al Madrigal and Jake Lacy. Emmy® winner Brad Garrett, Nicole Ari Parker, Xosha Roquemore and Stefania LaVie Owen will also recur in season-long arcs.

I’m Dying Up Here is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by William Knoedelseder.

It’s created and executive produced by Dave Flebotte, and executive produced by Michael Aguilar and Carrey.

I’m Dying Up Here season 2 is set to premiere on Showtime on May 6, 2018.