We totally blue ourselves while waiting for Will Arnett’s new show ‘Flaked.’
Today (March 11) marks a reunion of Will Arnett and Arrested Development creator Mitch Hurwitz as they premiere their new comedy series Flaked on Netflix. Back in the day, Arnett portrayed a failed magician while his latest project sees him taking on the role of a questionable self-help guru. We can’t wait to see how many jokes these two prepared for us this time around. And while a proper Arrested Development reunion hasn’t occurred yet, we’re taking a look at careers of the show’s stars (except Jason Bateman, because he's everywhere).
Will Arnett
George Oscar Bluth’s “illusions” may have failed in Arrested Development, but Will Arnett’s comedic talent burned bright and kept him on TV once the show was done. He guest starred in 30 Rock and Parks and Recreations (alongside his then-real-life wife Amy Poehler) among others and led several sitcoms—from Running Wilde to The Millers. He was also involved in several projects with his AD on-screen brother Jason Bateman, like a documentary Mansome and a digital content-creating company DumbDumb Production. As for the big screen, for the last two years he’s been helping Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles save the world in Michael Bay-produced movies.
Jeffrey Tambor
Jeffrey Tambor learned quite a few things about being a patriarch of a highly dysfunctional family during his time at Arrested Development. All of that came in handy when he was picked to headline Jill Soloway’s Transparent—another show about a highly dysfunctional family that has to deal with the news of its patriarch's decision to transition. Tambor’s portrayal of Maura was phenomenally exquisite and earned him a Golden Globe award. He also starred in two episodes of the now-cancelled sitcom The Millers alongside Will Arnett.
Alia Shawkat
Alia aka Maeby Bluth may only be 26, but she’s already made an impressive contribution to the world of indie movies. Unlike Maeby, Alia didn’t have to lie her way into the movie industry—she relied solely on her natural comedic talent. Once Arrested Development finished its initial run, she starred in almost 30 movies, from Drew Barrymore-directed Whip It to last year’s meta-horror-comedy The Final Girls, as well as more than 15 TV series. Her latest cinema project, Pee-wee’s Big Holiday, premieres on Netflix on March 18.
Portia de Rossi
Portia got famous thanks to her role in Ally McBeal and highly publicized marriage to Ellen DeGeneres, but it was her stint at Arrested Development as a clueless social activist Lindsay Bluth that earned her some serious street cred. Once the show was done, she starred in Nip/Tuck, short-lived sitcom Better Off Ted and in 2014 joined the cast of Scandal as the Vice President’s Chief of Staff. By the time Scandal returned for its fifth season last September, Portia was promoted to the series regular. But we’re secretly hoping she’ll get a chance to explore her comedic talent sometime soon as well.
Jessica Walter
Arrested Development introduced industry veteran Jessica Walter to a whole new generation of viewers, and we couldn’t get enough of her. After the original AD run and receiving an Emmy nomination for the eye-rolling matriarch of the Bluth clan, Walter starred on Saving Grace and helped launching 90210 sequel series (letting her character go halfway through the first season was a big mistake, if you ask us). In 2009 she finally found a steady gig as the voice of Malory Archer on FX’s Archer, but we have to confess: her voice is never enough—we need to see her rolling her eyes and sipping martinis as often as possible!
Tony Hale
Buster Bluth may have lost an arm to a loose seal in Arrested Development, but the funny man who played him earned enough respect during his stay on the cult show to secure a successful career even after the show was cancelled. These days, he serves as Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ personal aide on Veep, a role that brought him Primetime Emmy Award. He also starred in a bunch of movies, Lady Antebellum’s “Bartender” music video and voices a vicious pig named Ross in the movie adaptation of Angry Birds, which comes out on May 20.
David Cross
David Cross and Will Arnett proved that the best colleagues are the ones who laugh together, as after AD they starred in the Cross-created black comedy series The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret for three seasons (the third season premiered this January). The comedic duo also joined forces in a short-lived sitcom Running Wilde. Cross overlooked Comedy Central animated series Freak Show (no connection to American Horror Story, FYI). Apart from all of that, Cross writes books, records comedy albums, appears in music videos and just voiced Master Crane in Kung Fu Panda 3. But you still owe us that collaboration with Blue Man Group, David!
Michael Cera
Michael Cera came a long way since selling frozen bananas and having that awkward almost-romance with his cousin Maeby on Arrested Development. 2007 saw him becoming one of the most popular youngsters in Hollywood after he starred in Juno and Superbad, and in 2014 he proclaimed himself a musician by releasing a self-produced indie record True That. Last year, he starred in the Netflix series Wet Hot American Summer: First Day Of Camp, and he’s also involved in the Broadway production of This Is Our Youth.