It came as a shock to me, just as it probably did to you: the streaming service Peacock has cancelled its Rian-Johnson-led, vintagey howcatchem series Poker Face, in which Natasha Lyonne plays a human lie-detector/unofficial PI who travels across the country accidentally solving crimes. And it was cancelled after a mere two seasons!
I found this decision a bit baffling, to begin with… according to Deadline, Poker Face completed its second season as one of Peacock’s highest-watched shows. Then again, ratings were down compared to Season One. Still, is that reason alone for a network to pull a popular series, one that made such seismic waves when it was released?
The situation gets more interesting. Natasha Lyonne, whose chatty, goofy, chainsmoking Charlie made the show the modern classic that it is, has officially exited the project as an actor. That might not seem like a necessary thing to say about a cancelled show… except Rian Johnson, Natasha Lyonne, and Johnson’s partners in his production company T-Street are pitching a new version of the same show, with a new star as the main character. They’re asking for a two-season commitment, and the actor they’d like to play Charlie is… Peter Dinklage!
I know! There’s so much going on, it’s almost impossible to break down.
First off… Charlie Cale is now going to be a man! What! Now that’s a switch. Is Poker Face Doctor Who-ing itself? Every couple of seasons, we get an entirely new incarnation of a particular character?
Johnson and Lyonne released a statement about the decision:
“We’ve been germinating this next move together since writing the season two finale. We love our Poker Face and this is the perfect way to keep it rolling. Give us a beat and we may just see Charlie Cale again down that open highway.”
I’m incredibly curious about what prompted this particular shift, but I’m even more curious to see if we’ll get a new Poker Face. Would I like to see Dinklage as Charlie? As much as I love Lyonne’s version… yes I would.
