10 TV Shows Like the Return That You Should Watch in the Future.
Valerie Cherish is back, and it couldn’t be better. Twenty years after a modest but absolutely brilliant first season, the incredibly awkward Hollywood satire The Comeback returns to HBO for another excruciatingly awkward season (free). Created by and starring Lisa Kudrow, it’s a hilarious, dark, and occasionally touching story of a C-list celebrity determined to remain in the spotlight at any cost.
Valerie Cherish—small-minded, selfish, and painfully human—is one of television’s most memorable characters, simultaneously a victim of ageism, misogyny, and celebrity culture, and a woman who cares nothing about it as long as she can make it to the top. Similarly, these 10 shows follow women (mostly) of a certain age as they navigate career challenges with… mixed results.
Hack (2021 – )
At first glance, Valerie Cherish and Deborah Vance don’t seem to have much in common, but they often feel like two sides of the same coin in how they grapple with and come to terms with the pressures women face in modern show business. In Hacks , 25-year-old screenwriter Ava (Hannah Einbinder) is trying to get her career back on track after being “canceled” over a tweet. She reluctantly agrees to work for Deborah Vance (Jean Smart), a comedy pioneer who remains popular with the older Vegas crowd but whose career is largely on autopilot. They’re completely mismatched, but ultimately develop explosive chemistry: Jean Smart delivers some of the best work of her incredible career as the often deeply unpleasant Vance, and Einbinder more than delivers. It’s funny, caustic, and surprisingly touching when the show wants to be. Watch Hacks on HBO Max .
Girls5eva (2021–2024)
The plot is largely about a comeback: a ’90s girl group (Sara Bareilles, Busy Philipps, Paula Pell, and Renée Elise Goldsberry), who briefly enjoyed success with just one hit song, gets their chance at a career revival (they’re called Girls5eva because they thought they’d last in the music industry “longer than four people”—turns out they couldn’t; plus, there used to be a fifth member, but she died in a tragic infinity pool accident). After a rising rap star samples one of their old hits, the group reunites to try to find renewed relevance in the 2020s. Things don’t go well! Tina Fey is one of the executive producers, and the (very funny) original ’90s-inspired music was written and composed for the series by its creators. Watch Girls5Eva on Peacock andNetflix .
Vice President (2012–2019)
Valerie Cherish has a touching vulnerability that almost no one else on Veep possesses, but an air of sordid despair hangs heavy over both shows. Veep asks: What if the most terrifying people imaginable controlled every lever of power in America? What would it be like? In this highly satirical and thoroughly non-political series, Julia Louis-Dreyfus brilliantly plays Vice President Selina Meyer: part icon, part worst-case scenario for the feminist dream. The supporting characters are almost entirely composed of smug rich people clawing at each other for meager scraps of power while trying to be folk heroes to the common folk (us, the voters). It’s one of the funniest shows on television, with the most biting ironies… if you can get over the fact that history has overtaken it in favor of an even more absurd reality. Watch Veep on HBO Max.
Studio (2025 – )
Matt Remick ( The Comeback veteran Seth Rogen) is a film industry executive, and when he accepts a high-profile position at the fictional Continental Studios, he feels like his time has come. He’s eager to make a real impact in returning the increasingly IP-dependent film industry to its creative roots—until, about a minute into his new job, the CEO (Bryan Cranston) announces that his first order of business will be promoting The Kool-Aid Man . Hollywood satires of yesteryear have depicted the industry as one that swallows people up and spits them out, but the point here is that Remick longs for those good old days, just as Valerie can’t seem to move forward. The series also stars the late Catherine O’Hara, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders ( Bodies, Bodies, Bodies ), and Kathryn Hahn, and, like The Comeback , features numerous celebrity cameos. Watch The Studio on Apple TV+ .
Enlightened (2011–2013)
Before White Lotus, Mike White, along with star Laura Dern, created this beloved, albeit short-lived, comedy-drama about a middle-aged woman who suffers a complete breakdown after being demoted at the job she’s dedicated her entire life to. After a two-month stay at a holistic therapy center, Amy Jellicoe (Dern) decides to rethink her life, focusing on meditation and positive changes at work and home. The results are mixed, but there’s a wonderful sense that change is absurd and difficult, yet entirely possible. Watch Enlightened on HBO Max.
No Good Deed (2024)
I’m adding this show mainly because of Lisa Kudrow, but there’s a dark humor element to it too—plus, No Good Deed is a great show that many people have missed. The premise sounds like a gripping crime thriller: Kudrow plays retired pianist Lydia; Ray Romano is her husband, Paul. They’re in pretty tight financial straits and must sell their house without appearing too desperate to potential buyers, while also hiding a secret related to a death that occurred several years ago. Despite all this, it’s largely a comedy with a great supporting cast, including Linda Cardellini, Luke Wilson, OT Fagbenle, and Teyonah Parris. Watch No Good Deed on Netflix .
Younger (2015–2021)
Instead of a young woman striving for fame, Younger follows Lisa Miller (Sutton Foster), a recently divorced woman in her forties who finds her age a barrier to reentering the publishing industry she left years ago. After a compliment convinces her she could pass for a younger woman, she lies about being only 26 (how adorable!) to land an entry-level job. Various adventures ensue. Think of it as a coming-of-age story.Watch Younger on Netflix .
Hot in Cleveland (2010–2015)
Unlike reality TV and its structure, The Comeback is a traditional three-camera sitcom, albeit with a star-studded cast, and it approaches the challenges of being a middle-aged woman in the entertainment industry in much the same way. Writer Melanie (Valerie Bertinelli), beautician Joy (Jane Leeves), and soap opera star Victoria (Wendie Malick) spend a wild night in Cleveland after their flight to Paris is diverted, and in the process discover that while they’re considered “old” in Los Angeles, they’re actually all genuine Ohio 10s—though their feisty landlord, Elka (Betty White), might disagree. Watch Hot in Cleveland on Paramount+ .
Grace and Frankie (2015–2022)
For driven and slightly naive Valerie, who strives to stay on top, finding strong female friendships is a challenge. Grace (Jane Fonda), a cosmetics mogul, initially seems little different, but she finds a different path when she forges a truce with her nemesis Frankie (Lily Tomlin), an eccentric artist with whom she shares nothing in common—except the fact that their husbands left them for each other. (Valerie might want to take note.)Watch Grace and Frankie on Netflix.
Call My Agent! (2015–2020)
The international hit “Call My Agent!” tells the story of four talent agents at a prestigious firm who are forced to take over after the sudden death of the agency’s founder. All are given second chances midway through their careers—or even later. Starring Camille Cottin as Andréa Martel and Liliane Rover as Arlette Azéma, who is in her 80s, they navigate their complicated personal lives while meeting the needs of their real-life celebrity clients (Juliette Binoche, Monica Bellucci, Isabelle Huppert, and Sigourney Weaver are just a few of the guest stars, playing slightly exaggerated versions of themselves). It’s a gripping, engaging look at the world of show business that will delight even those with no French skills.Watch “Call My Agent!” on Netflix .