TV

How to Pitch a TV Show to Amy Poehler

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For more than 15 years, Amy Poehler has been developing her own TV shows with her Los Angeles–based production company, Paper Kite. And one look at her latest slate of projects—from a crafting competition series to a cult-loved comedy about stoner besties—proves the 47-year-old Emmy winner has anything but narrow tastes. Here, four projects that got her to “yes."

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    Broad City

    Sometimes the best material finds her. Back in 2011 Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson invited Poehler to guest-star in an episode of their Web series about two scrappy best friends trying to survive in the Big Apple. Impressed with the duo’s comedic verve and undeniable onscreen chemistry, she did them one better and agreed to come on as executive producer.“People watch Broad City because they love the friendship,” Poehler says. “Two women who put each other over anyone else in a city that never sleeps. It’s a classic story.”

    Broad City returns to Comedy Central in early 2019.

  • Linda Kallerus
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    Difficult People

    The comedy about two bitter thirty-somethings (Julie Klausner and Billy Eichner) was a labor of love. After developing a pilot with USA, Poehler brought it to Hulu, where it became one of the streamer’s first-ever scripted series. Its three-season run ended last fall, but Difficult People remains one of Poehler’s favorites. “That show had a delicious edge that showcased the talent of everyone involved,” she says. “And it gave us a completely new version of New York City.”

    Stream Difficult People now on Hulu.

  • Paul Drinkwater/NBC
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    Making It

    Poehler is back on TV with Parks and Rec alum Nick Offerman to cohost this not-so-cutthroat competition series. Poehler, who pitched the project to NBC as a “love letter” to the art of crafting, recognized the power of that giddy Knope-Swanson connection. “Nick and I share a similar work ethic. We don’t think things have to be painful to be important, but we do not suffer fools,” she says. “I’m so pleased we got to make this show, because we’re both desperate for something that celebrates hope—and the act of making things by hand.”

    Making It is airing on NBC now.

  • NBC
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    I Feel Bad

    When it came to creating a scripted series about a “busy, dynamic, unapologetic working mother,” Poehler wanted to deviate from standard sitcom formula. “At Paper Kite we are moved by diverse voices and [stories about] the complex female experience,” she says. Emet, played by Sarayu Blue, is conflicted about, well, everything. “The messaging women get is that we should have it all, do it all, be everything to everyone,” Blue says. “What I love about Emet is she’s just doing her best.” Amen.

    I Feel Bad debuts on NBC this month.

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