The Hollywood reboot machine has officially reached another ’90s cult favorite. Exactly 30 years after Jim Carrey’s dark comedy The Cable Guy polarized audiences in theaters, Hulu is bringing the concept back as a TV series.
How do you reboot ‘The Cable Guy’ in 2026?
The brilliance of Ben Stiller’s original 1996 film relied entirely on a specific cultural moment. Back then, cable television controlled our entertainment, and the guy holding the installation wrench essentially held the keys to your connection to the outside world. Today, we live in a world dominated by cord-cutting, digital algorithms, and endless streaming options.
The new series leans directly into that reality. Instead of updating the story with flashy tech gimmicks, the show asks what happens when someone whose entire identity was built around old-school cable suddenly finds themselves living in a streaming-first world.
While the premise remains familiar, the dynamic gets a modern update: Chip Douglas is a lonely cable technician languishing in the digital age who unexpectedly reconnects with a childhood friend after Steven calls to have his traditional cable restored. At first, the reunion is a positive escape for both men, but Chip’s enthusiasm quickly spirals into a chaotic obsession. According to Hulu’s description, the series will explore “the darkly absurd side of modern-day male friendship,” matching the uncomfortable, pitch-black humor that made the original movie stand out.
The creative team has strong comedy credentials
The writers behind the pilot have worked on some of television’s major comedy hits. The project comes from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia writer Rob Rosell, alongside Joe Piarulli and Luan Thomas from Cobra Kai.
Their approach will mirror what Fargo did with its 1996 movie source material: taking thematic inspiration from the original while expanding the universe for a broader television narrative. The difference is that this adaptation is expected to stay much closer to the core spirit of the original characters.
The new stars stepping into iconic roles
Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. will lead the pilot of the upcoming series while also serving as executive producers. Johnson will take over the role of Chip Douglas, the eccentric technician originally played by Jim Carrey, while Wayans Jr. will play Steven Stephens, the modern counterpart to the character originally portrayed by Matthew Broderick.
For fans of New Girl, the casting is brilliant news. Johnson and Wayans Jr. already boast years of flawless comedic chemistry together. Whether the reboot can capture the exact brand of weird energy that made Jim Carrey’s original performance memorable remains to be seen—but by anchoring the story in modern streaming fatigue, Hulu may just have found the rare reboot that actually has something new to say.