After news broke earlier this month that I Think You Should Leave Season 3 was officially in production for Netflix, fans on social media couldn’t help but plead with the streamer for a revival of the equally hilarious yet canceled-way-too-soon sitcom Detroiters. Running for two seasons on Comedy Central between 2017 and 2018 and earning an astoundingly deserving 95% freshness score on Rotten Tomatoes, the absurdist comedy created by Tim Robinson and his comedy partner, Sam Richardson has won a newfound interest with audiences thanks to endlessly streaming at its final resting place on Paramount+.
But considering the slowdown for original content on TV amid a very fickle and unapologetic programming realm canceling shows left and right, it might be near impossible for the 30-minute sitcom to find its legs on cable four years after its untimely end. Without a doubt, streaming is the place to be for a show like Detroiters but not revived as a TV show. Though Detroiters picked up its highest ratings for its pilot on Comedy Central in 2017 and stayed steady with nearly half a million viewers in its first season, the show sadly couldn’t gain much of an audience for its second, ultimately dropping 26% in viewership by the time it was canceled. Following a similar pattern in a downward trend like Community in its fifth season on NBC (now gearing up for its own movie on Peacock in 2023), it only makes sense for Robinson and Richardson to make their Detroiters comeback with an unfiltered full-length movie, clocking in around 90 minutes, as a short capsule of a particular event surrounding the two leads.
With a unique brand of character-based comedy pairing two lovable dimwits running an ad agency that balances wacky humor with heart and soul, Detroiters deserves its own movie without dragging the narrative that TV is so frequently guilty of. Season 2 was phenomenal and where I Think You Should Leave accentuates Robinson’s strange and maniacal mind through short sketches, Detroiters energetically serves as somewhat of a companion series blending Mad Men and Step Brothers, proving the unfiltered joy of its comical styling is a clear reason for a full-length return to Motor City, sooner rather than later.
Why ‘Detroiters: The Movie’ Would 100% Work
For decades, we’ve seen Hollywood turn to the small screen for inspiration to create mega-blockbuster franchises that carry just enough nostalgia for that sparkling movie charm. But turning seasons-long series into films has been no easy feat and while many don’t hold up to their originals (unless you’re Tom Cruise and reinvented the Mission: Impossible franchise), Detroiters is one that would feel very natural if adapted to a full-length feature because of its strong writing led by real-life best friends Robinson and Richardson, with writers Zach Kanin and Joe Kelly. As movies become more episodic and specific to leave room for long-form storytelling, Detroiters has the chance to really elevate its sidesplitting tales by turning them into a movie.
But first, let’s clarify “strong writing” by stating Detroiters does not spark profound conversations or stimulating assessments of life rivaling Maya Angelou or Noam Chomsky. That’s not what Robinson and Richardson set out for with this series — and that’s okay, because their comedy is the most effective in telling a sincerely funny story about two best friends whose relationship with each other and their community serves as a comical foundation for the show. Managing to wring as much humor as possible out of the script while delivering a hilarious 30 minutes of old-school comedy that will have you belly laughing, Detroiters maintains a sharp, careful pace that never meets any bumps along the way. Original, well-defined and always bizarre as it pulls inspiration from real-life local commercials, Detroiters is unique in that it’s a comedy that feels rather pristine in its gags and hilarity. Take, for example, the jingle for wigs made of human hair, the car of the future that poops, or the truth behind a very relatable tale in the episode, “Third Floor.”
As strong as the writing is and brilliantly executed, the humor and slapstick comedy that Robinson and Richardson share with audiences also offers an ease to uncomfortable situations, while helping us find common ground through humor to tell the truth about a situation. Take, for example, how Tim Cramblin (Robinson) gets stuck caring for a widower who can’t even make a sandwich or fix the bed. While this moment effectively utilized comedy as a curative agent to a sad reality, we know if a movie were to transpire, we would continue to see the pair at their funniest when steering from the plot and into sheer irreverence – like how Tim fixes the widower’s bed on his own while smoking a cigarette. It’s this sheer comic genius that offers faith in a Detroiters movie following consistently hilarious quips, alongside incredibly generous performances from its leads that dive enthusiastically into one joke after the other, never afraid to lean into the laughs through improvisation.
What Could a ‘Detroiters’ Movie be About?
Following two seasons that find a pair of second-rate ad men running a small agency in Detroit for local commercials filled with cheesy gags they assume is clever, the two love each other to bits, spend every minute together, and are miraculously related by way of marriage with Tim (Robinson) marrying Sam Duvet’s (Richardson) sister Chrissy, played by Shawntay Dalon. Illuminating an unflinching and solidly, rooted friendship against the backdrop of their native Detroit, a movie would be a lot more of those shenanigans, in addition to sequences with the two incompetent characters riding off into the sunset together, holding hands during a scary moment or even hyping each other up with the most middle-school type affirmations – we can only hope. But with Detroiters’ Season 2 offering much tighter writing following an ad of the week episode in its first season, the possibility of a movie instead of a TV show could succinctly magnify fresh vantages to further emphasize Tim and Sam’s relationship in their community and the people around them.
Audiences got a strong taste of this across its 20 episodes, but more so in Season 2, where we learned about Tim’s home life with Chrissy and met his brother Trevor (Connor O’Malley), while realizing how Sam has always wanted to settle down, but his best friend often gets in the way. This sentiment deepened at the end of Season 2 after Sam believed he was going to be a father and decided to quit Cramblin/Duvet, much to Tim’s upset. Of course, it all worked out, but Sam will never be happy if he can’t have what his best friend has, and that includes relationships. Sure, Tim changed the Cramblin agency name to include his best friend after years of working together, but the compromise feels short even for two best friends. While there's still uncertainty in what a movie plot could bring about, it’s these little seedlings the two planted across two seasons that give us a glimpse into possibilities.
As Season 1 managed to fill our view of the Cramblin/Duvet world with an eclectic bunch of characters and guest stars that we would love to see return to a movie like Jason Sudeikis (who serves as executive producer) or Cecily Strong, we learned there is more to this universe by the end of Season 2. If a Detroiters full-length movie happens, it would have to follow the logic of Tim and Sam’s dumb, endearing characters and work to boost their life outside the agency for more depth and nuance without evading the peculiarities that make them so lovable to fans. Anything less would fall short. But knowing Robinson and Richardson, the two are impeccable writers filling the show with quick-witted dialogue that is refreshingly brilliant.