Julia Louis-Dreyfus starred in two of the best sitcoms ever made, but, in-between, she led a show that has been largely forgotten. “The New Adventures of Old Christine” follows Louis-Dreyfus as divorced mother Christine, who struggles to stay friends with her ex-husband Richard (Clark Gregg) as he dates a younger woman nicknamed New Christine (Emily Rutherfurd). The show received glowing reviews, strong ratings, and co-starred Wanda Sykes, but was still canceled by CBS in 2010.
In a May 2010 interview with TV Guide (via Digital Spy), the show’s creator, Kari Lizer, accused CBS of not supporting the show enough. “I hate to say it, but I’m afraid they don’t care much for the female-of-a-certain-age point of view over there. How else do you explain them squandering the talents of Julia and Wanda?” she said.
Talking to the Hollywood Reporter in 2026, Louis-Dreyfus said CBS treated the show “like s**t” and that the network had “screwed us” by canceling it at 88 episodes. “The New Adventures of Old Christine” had only been 12 episodes away from its 100th episode, which would’ve made it ripe for a syndication deal. Perhaps the series would’ve had more cultural staying power if it had enjoyed consistent reruns after its Season 5 finale, but instead, it became one of the many shows from the 2000s that nobody seems to talk about.
The New Adventures of Old Christine broke the so-called Seinfeld Curse
Although the show didn’t last as long as its cast and crew may have hoped, it did successfully break the Seinfeld Curse. Before the series premiered, Jason Alexander’s sitcoms, “Bob Patterson” and “Listen Up,” were both canceled after their debut seasons, as was “The Michael Richard Show.” Louis-Dreyfus’ first post-“Seinfeld” sitcom, “Watching Ellie,” did technically make it to Season 2, but was still canceled after only 19 episodes.
One of the only “Seinfeld” alumni to truly thrive in the early 2000s was Larry David, who rarely acted much in “Seinfeld” itself. David created and starred in “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and even included a storyline that appeared to address the Seinfeld Curse. Throughout Season 2, David attempts to create a meta sitcom with Louis-Dreyfus (who plays herself) about an actress who can’t find work because she’s been typecast as her earlier character from a hit sitcom.
Meta “Curb” storylines notwithstanding, both David and Louis-Dreyfus have publicly denied the idea that the Seinfeld Curse ever existed. “It’s crazy. So there were two TV shows attempted that didn’t work? Big deal. How many TV shows work?” David told Esquire in 2009. When Louis-Dreyfus won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for “Christine” in 2006, she mocked the Seinfeld Curse theories in her acceptance speech: “I’m not somebody who really believes in curses,” she said, holding her trophy up, “but curse this, baby!”
