HBO’s set an October 14, 2018 premiere date for the half-hour series Camping starring Jennifer Garner and David Tennant. The new series comes from writers and executive producers Lena Dunham, Jenni Konner, and John Riggi, and is based on the British series created by Julia Davis.
Jennifer Garner (Peppermint) and David Tennant (Doctor Who) are joined by Oscar nominee Juliette Lewis (Cape Fear), Arturo Del Puerto (Independence Day: Resurgence), Ione Skye (Fever Pitch), Janicza Bravo, and Brett Gelman (Stranger Things). Bridget Everett (Trainwreck) is a recurring cast member.
Season one will consist of eight episodes.
“When we saw Julia Davis’ hilarious U.K. Camping, we knew this was the most fun concept for writers and actors,” stated Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner. “We are so excited by our cast. We are so excited by this story. We are so excited to make you never want to go to the woods again.”
The Camping Plot and Characters:
“To celebrate her husband Walt’s 45th birthday, the obsessively organized and aggressively controlling Kathryn gathers together her meek sister, her holier-than-thou ex-best friend and a free-spirited tagalong – and what was supposed to be a delightful, back-to-nature camping trip quickly becomes a weekend of tested marriages and woman-on-woman crime that won’t soon be forgotten.”
- Kathryn McSorley-Jodell (Jennifer Garner) is a controlling LA mom who is far less cheerful than her Lululemons imply. She directs the weekend’s proceedings with an iron grip, until she’s faced with a woman who undoes all her best-laid plans.
- Walt (David Tennant) is an obedient husband and a loving father, the reliable lynchpin of his male social group, but below that reality lurks a subtle but growing discontent about what he’s just signed up for.
- Jandice (Juliette Lewis) is a woman of many talents: a DJ, a reiki healer and a certified public accountant. Her life may seem ideal, but the reality is far less.
- Smack dab in the middle of a midlife crisis, the recently separated Miguel (Arturo Del Puerto) now expresses his instability through a youthful wardrobe and very strange life choices.
- Carleen (Ione Skye) has spent her life in the shadows as Kathryn’s sister. Timid and terrified, she must rely on her own strange passions, such as crocheting, to get her through the lonely days.
- Nina-Joy (Janicza Bravo) is the friend you go to for everything: best massage, best jeans, best oatmeal. But her tension with Kathryn over a breach of confidence threatens to topple the weekend.
- George (Brett Gelman) is loyal, goofy and infinitely game. He’s as obsessed with his best friend, Walt, as he is with his wife, Nina-Joy, and just under the surface of this affable boom operator simmers barely repressed rage that can stop any singalong.
- Harry (Bridget Everett) is the tough-talking, nature-loving queen of the campsite; her passion for her wife, Nan, is surpassed only by her passion for all other women and an assortment of arms.
Camping Season One Episode Preview:
- Episode #1: “Pilot”
Debut: SUNDAY, OCT. 14 (10:00-10:30 p.m. ET/PT)
A “perfect” group camping trip, obsessively organized by Kathryn McSorley-Jodell (Jennifer Garner) in honor of her adoring husband Walt’s (David Tennant) 45th birthday, is threatened by tension between Kathryn and her estranged best friend, Nina-Joy (Janicza Bravo), the unexpected addition of a pissed-off goth teen (Cheyenne Haynes) and the chaotic arrival of Miguel (Arturo Del Puerto), who is smack dab in the middle of a breakdown and toting his new girlfriend, Jandice (Juliette Lewis), a woman of many talents who rubs Kathryn the wrong way.
Written by Lena Dunham & Jenni Konner; directed by Jenni Konner. - Episode #2: “Going to Town”
Debut: SUNDAY, OCT. 21 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
After her son, Orvis (Duncan Joiner), gets roughed up in a game of flag football, Kathryn (Jennifer Garner) rushes him to the nearest hospital, flipping out about his health and the danger that Miguel’s girlfriend, Jandice (Juliette Lewis), poses to the weekend. As Kathryn and Walt (David Tennant) attend to Orvis, the others hit a local bar, where a racially charged remark to Nina-Joy (Janicza Bravo) awakens George’s (Brett Gelman) rage. Elsewhere, Miguel (Arturo Del Puerto) and Jandice create real issues for a prissy shop owner (John Riggi).
Written by Lena Dunham & Jenni Konner; directed by Jenni Konner. - Episode #3: “Fishing Trip”
Debut: SUNDAY, OCT. 28 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
When the guys go on a fishing trip, Walt (David Tennant) opens up about his dead-in-the-water sex life. Jandice (Juliette Lewis) encourages Carleen (Ione Skye) to loosen up and embrace her female strength. Kathryn’s (Jennifer Garner) attempt to mend things with Nina-Joy (Janicza Bravo) is overshadowed by a big announcement. Miguel (Arturo Del Puerto) and Jandice’s first misunderstanding gets serious fast.
Written and directed by John Riggi. - Episode #4: “Up All Night”
Debut: SUNDAY, NOV. 4 (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
A late-night pill swap leads a buzzed Kathryn (Jennifer Garner) to crash a neighboring campsite, where she runs into Nina-Joy (Janicza Bravo), Carleen (Ione Skye) and some chic old friends. Unsettled by a revelation from Miguel (Arturo Del Puerto), Jandice (Juliette Lewis) ends up sharing a beer with a forbidden friend.
Written by Paula Pell; directed by Wendy Stanzler.
