Editor’s Note: The below contains spoilers for ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Season 12, Episode 6.
Curb Your Enthusiasmis all about making its viewers uncomfortable.Larry Davidhas made a career out of humor found in the awkward moments, from the failures of George Costanza (Jason Alexander),onSeinfeld,who is based on David,to the weekly mishaps of an exaggerated version of the real life Larry onCurb Your Enthusiasm. As the HBO series makes its way through its12th and final season,a guest star emerged who showed that they could be even more cringe than the show’s creator and star. In the episode “The Gettysburg Address” (Larry is trying to learn the famous speech during the usually wasted moments of using the bathroom),Lori LoughlinofFull Housefamestars as a version of herself. Loughlin isn’t shown in a good light, however, as the focus is on her college admissions cheating scandal and the idea that she might still be someone who lies to get her away. It’s an awkward way of bringing reality into comedy, making you laugh as you recoil.
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The life and times of Larry David and the predicaments he gets himself into with his friends and complete strangers.
‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Finds Uncomfortable Humor in Reality
This season,Curb Your Enthusiasmhas done a deft job ofonce again bringing real life into the series, withLarry David finding himself in trouble after giving a bottle of water to a Black woman outside a polling place in Georgia. As it’s illegal to do so, David is arrested and inadvertently becomes a hero to the liberal and the Black communities. His angry looking mugshot even closely resembles the infamous one of a certain recent past President. Of course, since this is Larry David, he finds a way to mess up all the good will he’s amassed. Last season,Curb Your Enthusiasmbrought inAlexander Vindman, the former Director for European Affairs for the NSC,who ended up at the forefront of the Trump-Ukraine scandal, and put him in a similar plotline with Larry. The most cringeworthy moment of all hadMichael J. Foxcome aboard as himself in Season 8,where his character hinted at faking Parkinsons.
Curb Your Enthusiasm, of course, doesn’t need real life to be both funny and awkward. The series can find humor in the most cringeworthy of made-up situations. For example,in perhaps their most uncomfortable episode ever, 2001’s “The Doll”, Larry pops the head off a girl’s doll to replace it after he cuts its hair off. If that’s not enough,he hides the doll’s head in his pants, leading to a rash that results in him sticking a cold water bottle down the front of his trousers for relief. This being Larry, he then uses a women’s bathroom, where he runs into the same girl while still having the water bottle in his pants, causing her to run out screaming and Larry to run for his life. It’s hilariously awkward, an episode made worse by the minute due to Larry’s inability to make the right choice. It’s a type of cringe only a few shows, likeCurb Your Enthusiasm, can get away with.
Lori Loughlin Went to Prison Due to a College Bribery Scandal
Lori Loughlin will always be best known for her role inFull House, where she played Becky Katsopolis,the wife ofJohn Stamos' Jesse. After the ABC series ended in 1995, Loughlin had roles in other TV shows and movies, but nothing matched the success of the part which had made her famous. In 2016, she returned to the role of Beckyin a recurring part on Netflix’sFuller House. She was in 13 episodes during the first four seasons, but she wouldn’t be there for its last.
In 2019, 50 people, including Loughlin and actressFelicity Huffman,were arrested as part of a college admissions scheme, where rich parents paid big money to increase the chances of their children getting into America’s elite colleges. This was done by others being paid to take tests for their kids, along with bribing administrators and coaches. As for Loughlin, she and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli,paid half of a million dollars to increase the chances of their two daughters getting into the University of Southern California.Lori Loughlin pleaded guiltyand was sentenced to two months in prison, 100 hours of community service, and given a $150,000 fine.She was written out of the last season ofFuller House, with it quickly explained that Becky was in Nebraska helping her mother.
‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Filmed (but Didn’t Use) a Larry David Death Scene
It would have made Susie happy at least.
Just because Lori Loughlin went to prison, that didn’t mean her acting career was over. ForCurb Your Enthusiasm, that awkwardness of real life only made them want the actress more. Series producerJeff SchaffertoldThe Hollywood Reporterabout how they landed Loughlin for a guest spot on the show alongside Larry David. WriterTeddy Bressmanhad the idea of having Loughlin come in to play a version of herself, someone who still might be a cheater. Schaffer said:
“So we called her manager up, who loved it, and who then talked to Lori, and she said: ‘I’m in, I’m totally game.’ And she was. She was so great. Everything we threw at her, she was game to do. She makes the episode."
Lori Loughlin’s Lying on ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Results in Awkward Laughs
Lori Loughlin andCurb Your Enthusiasmshouldn’t go together. Loughlin made her nameplaying wholesome characters in family showsand movies, while wholesome is the last word you’d use to describeCurb Your Enthusiasm. The fact that Lori Loughlin is an ex-con, however,makes her perfect for Larry David and company— the stranger, the better.
Richards onCurb Your Enthusiasmwas cringe enough, but he’s an actor used to doing over-the-top stunts. Lori Loughlin will always be sweet Becky onFull House, where the biggest drama was someone not doing their homework and issues were often solved with a hug in 30 minutes or less. Now, she’s cheating, pretending to be handicapped, and flaunting money to get ahead. It’s so awful thateven Larry, the king of cringe, is taken aback. Loughlin’s eagerness to accept her past and play against expectations helps createone of the best guest characters the series has ever seen. For some, it could be offensive to see a criminal making light of their crimes, but if you’re offended, that’s exactly what Larry David wants.Curb Your Enthusiasmthrives in it.
Curb Your Enthusiasmis available to stream on Max in the U.S.
