WHY??? BECAUSE!!!
Nico LangGet ready to experience the joy of screaming at random strangers on the world’s largest streaming platform becauseBilly on the Street is coming to Netflix.
On Wednesday, the gay comedian announced with a signature all-caps tweet that the mock game show — which ran for three seasons on Fuse and two on TruTV — would be available to stream starting November 1. “BIG NEWS: MOVE OVER, GRACE AND FRANKIE!” he wrote, thereby approximating what we can only assume is his bedroom voice.
Billy on the Street quickly developed a massive cult fandom after debuting in 2012. The format is a dadaist take on man-on-the-street interviews one might see on local news: Instead of asking inoffensive questions of random passersby, Eichner screams at them, offering a dollar for a correct answer. He often brings a favorite celebrity (or fake celebrity) along for the ride.
In one of the show’s best segments, Kate McKinnon pretended to be Reese Witherspoon, and the crew just so happened to run into a man who just so happened to know Madeline Mackenzie herself, claiming they met at a dinner thrown by auteur of white kitchens Nancy Meyers. (Witherspoon starred in Home Again, directed by Meyers’ daughter.) Hilariously, the gentleman did not pick up on the fact that Kate McKinnon definitely was not the star of Legally Blonde, although she would have been great in it.
Other classic moments from Billy on the Street include dragging Amy Poehler around in a Pitbull mask clip, getting Julianne Moore to perform monologues for strangers for change, or asking people whether they would have sex with Paul Rudd (with the actor on hand for a visual cue).
In a less-celebrity focused moment, a girl carrying a yoga mat can’t name a single woman (hint: herself!!) before fleeing the scene. (It’s at the :20 mark and is utterly priceless.)
New segments of the show continue to be produced on Funny or Die in association with the ridesharing app Lyft. Highlights of the recent batch include Eichner’s attempt to cast an “inclusive version of Hocus Pocus” with Tiffany Haddish and trying to unite our divided by getting Emma Stone (aka “the bubble tea of humans”) to join Instagram. Spoiler: It didn’t work.
But as Netflix gives Eichner a new platform to shout about Anne Hathaway, the comedian thanked his “four fans” for making this day possible. If the response on Twitter is any indication, he’s got a couple more than that.
Needless to say, Lily Tomlin is shaking.
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