Netflix Presents: The Characters

Netflix’s Forgotten Sketch Experiment: The Characters and the Rise of Its Comedy Stars

When Netflix Presents: The Characters dropped in March 2016, it was billed as a bold experiment in sketch comedy—an anthology series giving eight up-and-coming comedians free rein to craft their own half-hour episodes. latestnetflix.com's take is that with no overarching plot or recurring cast, the show was a gamble on raw talent, and in hindsight, it reads like a time capsule of the stars who would soon dominate comedy’s next wave.

A Launchpad for Comedy’s Future

The series’ structure was simple: each episode was a standalone showcase for a single comedian, letting them build a world around their signature style. While the evidence doesn’t name every creator or performer, the clips and trailers spotlight a few standouts. John Early, now known for Search Party and The Other Two, appears in multiple promos, including a scene-stealing turn as "Vicky," a character whose exaggerated Southern drawl and deadpan delivery hint at the absurdist humor he’d later refine . Tim Robinson, the Detroiters and I Think You Should Leave mastermind, also gets his own episode, though the specifics of his sketches remain undetailed in the available snippets .

Henry Zebrowski, another featured comedian, would go on to co-star in Our Flag Means Death and What We Do in the Shadows, but his episode in The Characters is a reminder of his early knack for unhinged, high-energy comedy . The series’ trailer teases a mix of surreal and relatable humor, from awkward social interactions to outright bizarre scenarios, suggesting Netflix was betting on a new generation of comedians who could blend cringe, absurdity, and sharp satire .

The Anthology Gamble: Why It Faded

Despite its star-studded (in hindsight) lineup, The Characters never became a breakout hit. The anthology format, while fresh, may have worked against it—without a unifying theme or recurring cast, it lacked the bingeable hook of other Netflix originals. The series’ eight-episode run was a modest one, and there’s no evidence it was renewed . Still, its legacy lives on in the careers it helped launch. Early, Robinson, and Zebrowski all became comedy mainstays, and the show’s willingness to hand them creative control feels like a precursor to platforms like HBO Max and Peacock later embracing similar sketch experiments.

What the Clips Reveal

The available trailers and clips offer glimpses of the show’s tone. One promo, titled Next Generation, frames the series as a passing-of-the-torch moment, with the featured comedians positioned as the heirs to sketch comedy’s old guard . Another clip, a teaser for the full series, leans into the chaotic energy of the episodes, with rapid-fire cuts of awkward pauses, over-the-top reactions, and meta-humor . It’s the kind of humor that thrives on discomfort and unpredictability—qualities that would later define Robinson’s I Think You Should Leave and Early’s work on The Other Two.

The Unanswered Questions

For all its influence, The Characters remains a footnote in Netflix’s comedy history. The evidence doesn’t reveal who greenlit the project, how the comedians were selected, or why it wasn’t renewed. Rumors of behind-the-scenes drama or creative clashes? Unconfirmed. What is clear is that the series served as a proving ground for a new wave of comedians who would go on to shape the genre in the years that followed.