Entertainment

What Kind of Show Will Chelsea Do Next?

by Kadeen Griffiths

The talk show world has been undergoing a lot of changes these days. The biggest shake-up so far was David Letterman's decision to retire from The Late Show and Stephen Colbert subsequently being hired to replace him, but that's far from the only news there's been. In February, Seth Meyers jumped from Saturday Night Live to Late Night after Jimmy Fallon jumped from Late Night to The Tonight Show. In March, Chelsea Handler revealed that she will be leaving E! when her contract expires in the fall. While the deal Handler has struck with Netflix is still just a rumor at this point, it still seems like the best thing that could possibly happen to Chelsea Lately.

Netflix's original programming is just starting to get a leg up in the industry with shows like Orange is the New Black, but Chelsea Handler could bring Netflix ratings like they've never seen before. Handler has made her interest in working with Netflix clear in the past, due in part to the creative freedom that doing so would award her. If there's one thing that Handler would truly blossom with, it's creative freedom. Chelsea Lately is great, but Handler has a broader range of hilarious one-liners than she can get away with on E! According to The New York Post, it's now just a matter of choosing her format.

Talk Show

Handler has more than proven her talk show props on Chelsea Lately. Taking the show over to Netflix would not only provide her with a built-in fan base of people who would only be padded by those who previously couldn't fit the show into their television watching schedule, but it would give us all a look at what the show could have been like if Handler had been given complete creative control over it. It would also open Handler to an even wider variety of guest stars since she wouldn't just have to worry about making sure they're timely.

Sketch Comedy

If you've never seen Handler's stand-up, then you're missing out on at least half of what makes her so awesome. Imagine a version of Saturday Night Live under Chelsea Handler's complete control. Or, even better, imagine a version of Inside Amy Schumer except it's Inside Chelsea Handler and ten times as raunchy. (Is such a thing even possible?) At the very least, we'd like to see at least a portion of Handler's new show devoted to some of her stand-up comedy because she should show off as many of her talents as she can possibly fit into an hour or a half-hour.

Mockumentary

Remember After Lately, the mockumentary of everything that went on behind-the-scenes of Chelsea Lately? The show ran from 2011 to 2013 and regularly featured celebrity guest stars acting like parody versions of themselves. Most importantly, it was hilarious and is definitely one of the things that Handler should consider revamping for Netflix. We'd even love to see faux behind-the-scenes clips at the end of whatever show format she ultimately chooses, like bonus bloopers except ten times more awesome.

Sitcom

Handler had a sitcom based on one of her books back in 2012 that was cancelled after only a season. It was called Are You There, Chelsea? and Handler acted as its executive producer as well as a reoccuring guest star. Now imagine a female-centered, feminist-friendly sitcom written by Handler and starring Handler available for easy streaming at your leisure on Netflix. Excited yet?

Whatever Handler ultimately decides to do if and when she finalizes her deal with Netflix, there's one thing we can definitely say for sure. It's going to be amazing.