Sitcom backlash "understandable"

Kath & Kim’s Rick McKenna has told Variety he understands the Aussie “blogger backlash” referred to by Selma Blair.

His comments come at a time when Horizon Media made a troublesome analysis of the show’s timeslot (later moved by NBC) and a dubious US media which wondered why it was being shown select scenes that may or may not be re-shot. They also didn’t get how Selma Blair and Molly Shannon could play mother and daughter at their ages.

“The fact that the show has such a large following in Australia and worldwide means people always have an attachment whether it is Kath & Kim or Seinfeld, any show with a large following will have fans that feel ownership of the characters,” he said. True enough.

McKenna spent three years trying to find the right partner to remake the comedy and says he turned down a number of offers before inking a deal with NBC. He told Variety that the Aussie version of the show always keeps to short runs, giving bloggers plenty of time to ruminate on the new US version.

“Key to our deal with Reveille and NBC is that we are not Endemol or Granada with 400 different formats,” McKenna says. “Gina and Jane and I regard this as our family business and we are very protective of that.”

Curiously, Ben Silverman furthers a line that pitches the show again as a show about returning to the nest. “Kath and Kim’s relationship is accessible,” Silverman says. “In America, just like in Australia, more adult-age children are living with their parents, it’s a phenomenon.” Ironically, Seven’s own forthcoming drama Packed to the Rafters is built around the very same premise (so was SBS’ reality The Nest).

Source: Variety