NBC’s next sitcom Newlywedsstarring Tèa Leoni and Tim Daly and starring Jamie Lee Curtis, is undergoing a behind-the-scenes shakeup. Gail Lerner, who co-created the series with Curtis, is absent as showrunner. The comedy veteran, who began her career on NBC Will and Grace, announced her firing on Instagram during the show’s October 23 premiere.
“The reason I was given was ‘creative differences,'” Lerner wrote. “I’m so sad to be parted from the most joyful television experience of my life. The cast, crew and writers are unparalleled.”
Lerner added a “ray of hope”: “The first six episodes were made under my direction, and I wouldn’t change a thing. »
According to sources, Newlyweds is set to film episode 8 of its 13-episode order today. The show will take a pre-planned break next week. NBC and the series studio Universal Television should take the opportunity to find a new showrunner.
Written by Lerner, Newlyweds is a later-in-life love story about a free-spirited woman (Leoni) and a buttoned-up professor (Leoni’s real husband, Daly) who impetuously marry after a whirlwind courtship.
Lerner and Curtis serve as executive producers alongside Eric Tannenbaum, Kim Tannenbaum, Scott Schwartz and Lionsgate Television.. Leoni is a producer. Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, is the studio.
“No one knows what’s going to happen in our meshhuganah business, but I predict this series is going to be a barn burner,” Lerner wrote. “Please check out the top six (and beyond!). If you like them, let me know! If you don’t, keep it to yourself. Sending all my love and hopes for a long, happy run to everyone who gave their talent and open hearts to make this happen. As my dear friend @courtneyaltonlilly told me, it’s better to die on your feet than to live on your knees. Love from your friend on your feet.”
At NBC’s fall press event held in August, Lerner spoke about Newlyweds’ a long way to the screen and gave props to the network, who have now removed her from the series.
“Jamie brought this idea to me during the pandemic, so we’ve been generating it for a very long time,” she said. “For a million different reasons, it hibernated for a while, and a lot of people say my project is dead, but I just knew my project was in hibernation. And then NBC called literally in November 2025 and said, ‘Hey, let’s make this show,’ and we were off to the races. So it was just amazing to have NBC reinvest in multi-cam and bring back must-see TV. To me, that’s really what it is.”
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