MIKE JUDGE TAKES A COMIC LOOK AT WORLD OF
HIGH-TECH IN THE NEW HBO SERIES
SILICON VALLEY, DEBUTING APRIL 6
In the high-tech gold rush of modern Silicon Valley, the people most qualified to succeed are the least capable of handling success.
Mike Judge (“Office Space,” “Beavis & Butt-head,” “King of the Hill”) brings his irreverent brand of humor to HBO in the new comedy series SILICON VALLEY. Partially inspired by Judge’s own experiences as a Silicon Valley engineer in the late ‘80s, the show is a collaboration between Judge and Alec Berg (“Seinfeld,” HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm”), and kicks off its eight-episode season SUNDAY, APRIL 6 (10:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT), immediately following the season debut of “Game of Thrones.”
SILICON VALLEY features a talented ensemble of young comic actors. Cast regulars include: Thomas Middleditch (“Search Party,” “The Office”), T.J. Miller (“Mash Up,” “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World”), Zach Woods (“In the Loop,” “The Office”), Kumail Nanjiani (“Franklin & Bash,” “Portlandia”), Martin Starr (“Freaks and Geeks,” “Party Down”), Josh Brener (“Glory Daze,” “The Internship”), Christopher Evan Welch (“The Master,” “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”) and Amanda Crew (“Jobs,” “Charlie St. Cloud”). Matt Ross (“Magic City,” HBO’s “Big Love”) guest stars.
Richard (Middleditch) is an introverted computer programmer living in the Hacker Hostel start-up incubator along with his best friend, Big Head (Brener), pompous Gilfoyle (Starr) and dry-witted Dinesh (Nanjiani). These social misfits live under the watch of Erlich (Miller), a self-satisfied dotcom millionaire who lets them stay in his house for free – as long as he gets a ten percent stake in their projects.
After a failed pitch to billionaire venture capitalist Peter Gregory (Welch), Richard seems destined to remain at his job at the tech company Hooli, founded by the megalomaniacal Gavin Belson (Ross). When Monica (Crew), Gregory’s head of operations, and Jared (Woods), a Hooli executive, realize the value of the site’s compression algorithm, a bidding war erupts between Belson and Gregory, with Richard caught in the middle.
Mike Judge directs four of the eight episodes; Alec Berg directs two episodes; Tricia Brock (HBO’s “Girls”) and Maggie Carey (“The To Do List”) also direct.
The writers are Mike Judge, Alec Berg, Clay Tarver, Dan O’Keefe, John Altschuler & Dave Krinsky, Ron Weiner, Carson Mell, Jessica Gao and Matteo Borghese & Rob Turbovsky.
Upcoming episodes:
Episode #1: “Minimum Viable Product”
Debut: SUNDAY, APRIL 6 (10:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT)
Other HBO playdates: April 6 (12:30 a.m., 2:00 a.m.), 7 (12:30 a.m.), 8 (10:00 p.m.), 9 (8:00 p.m.), 10 (9:30 p.m., midnight), 11 (1:00 a.m.), 16 (7:30 p.m.) and 23 (7:00 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 7 (10:30 p.m.), 8 (2:20 a.m.) and 12 (8:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.)
Attending an elaborate launch party, Richard (Thomas Middleditch) and his computer programmer friends – Big Head (Josh Brener), Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani) and Gilfoyle (Martin Starr) – dream of making it big. Instead, they’re living in the communal Hacker Hostel owned by former programmer Erlich (T.J. Miller), who gets to claim ten percent of anything they invent there. When it becomes clear that Richard has developed a powerful compression algorithm for his website, Pied Piper, he finds himself courted by Gavin Belson (Matt Ross), his egomaniacal corporate boss, who offers a $10 million buyout by his firm, Hooli. But Richard holds back when well-known investor Peter Gregory (Christopher Evan Welch) makes a counteroffer.
Written by John Altschuler & Dave Krinskey & Mike Judge; directed by Mike Judge.
Episode #2: “The Cap Table”
Debut: SUNDAY, APRIL 13 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: April 13 (12:30 a.m., 2:00 a.m.), 14 (1:00 a.m.), 15 (10:00 p.m.), 16 (8:00 p.m.), 17 (9:30 p.m., midnight), 18 (1:00 a.m.) and 23 (7:30 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 14 (10:30 p.m.), 15 (3:15 a.m.) and 19 (8:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.)
After a celebratory party at the Hacker Hostel, Richard and Erlich learn that Peter Gregory won’t pay up until they deliver a viable business plan that includes a slimmed-downed staff. A desperate Richard hires former Belson underling Jared (Zach Woods), and they set about trying to trim the fat. While Gilfoyle and Dinesh prove essential, Big Head’s place in the company is less certain.
Written by Carson Mell; directed by Mike Judge.
Episode #3: “Articles of Incorporation”
Debut: SUNDAY, APRIL 20 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: April 20 (12:30 a.m., 2:00 a.m.), 21 (1:30 a.m.), 22 (9:00 p.m.), 23 (8:00 p.m.), 24 (9:30 p.m., midnight) and 25 (1:00 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 21 (10:30 p.m.), 22 (1:30 a.m.) and 26 (8:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.)
While Gavin Belson begins to hype Nucleus, a competing compression platform, Richard learns that the name Pied Piper is already registered to a sprinkler company, forcing him to negotiate. Meanwhile, Erlich goes on a vision quest for a new company name, and Peter Gregory proves elusive when one of his companies asks for money.
Written by Matteo Borghese and Rob Turbovsk; directed by Tricia Brock.
Episode #4: “Fiduciary Duties”
Debut: SUNDAY, APRIL 27 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
Other HBO playdates: April 27 (1:00 a.m., 3:00 a.m.), 28 (midnight), 29 (10:00 p.m.) and 30 (8:00 p.m.)
HBO2 playdates: April 28 (10:30 p.m.) and 29 (1:30 a.m.)
At Peter’s toga party, Richard drunkenly promises to make Erlich a board member, which he regrets the next morning. After being unassigned at Hooli, Big Head finds others like him who have made careers out of doing nothing. Richard struggles to put Pied Piper’s vision into words for a presentation without Erlich; later, he discovers an interesting connection between Peter and Gavin Belson.
Written by Rob Weiner; directed by Maggie Carey.
SILICON VALLEY was created by Mike Judge & John Altschuler & Dave Krinsky; executive producers, Mike Judge, Alec Berg, John Altschuler & Dave Krinsky, Michael Rotenberg and Tom Lassally; producers, Jim Kleverweis and Chrisann Verges.
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