Entertainment

Neil Patrick Harris is ready to take on the gay dating scene in the trailer for Netflix’s Uncoupled – Stylist Magazine

For lovers of a romantic comedy, 2022 is shaping up to be full of films and TV series that make your heart full. From Netflix’s hit LGBTQ+ series Heartstopper to Hulu’s coming-of-age movie Crush, there’s no shortage of brilliant love stories that are remixing the genre in fresh and interesting ways.

So when we caught word that a colourful new romcom series chronicling a gay man’s break-up was in the works at Netflix, we knew we’d be in for a refreshingly different watch.  

Hot on the heels of the second instalment of smash hit romcom Emily In Paris, super-producer Darren Star – he of Sex And The City fame – has teamed up with Netflix once more for the upcoming series Uncoupled.

Starring Neil Patrick Harris, the eight-part series follows a New York City man named Michael who thought his life was perfect until his husband of 17 years blindsides him by walking out the door.

Overnight, Michael must confront two nightmares – losing what he thought was his soulmate and suddenly finding himself a single gay man in his mid-40s in New York City.

Uncoupled

Uncoupled

Harris, who will be making his return to series television after previously playing the villainous Count Olaf in A Series Of Unfortunate Events, will be joined by several other familiar faces who make up the characters in Michael’s inner circle.

They include Tisha Campbell (Martin) as Suzanne Prentiss, a high-powered real-estate agent who is Michael’s business partner and friend.

Marcia Gay Harden (Mystic River) also joins the cast as Claire Lewis, an elegant and wealthy art collector who is currently divorcing her husband.

Tuc Watkins (The Mummy) plays Colin McKenna, a successful businessman and Michael’s ex, while Emerson Brooks (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) portrays Billy Jackson, a celebrity TV weatherman and one of Michael’s closest friends.

Elsewhere, Brooks Ashmanskas (Julie & Julia) rounds out the cast as Stanley James, an art dealer and another of Michael’s close friends.

Happily, we don’t have to wait long until the series lands on Netflix, as Uncoupled hits the streaming platform at the end of July.

In the official trailer for the new series, we see Harris’ Michael Lawson get dumped unceremoniously on the pavement after his husband Colin (Tuc Watkins) gets into a taxi and drives away from him without a backwards glance.

Help is at hand, though, thanks to the support of best friends Suzanne (Tisha Campbell), Billy (Emerson Brooks) and Stanley (Brooks Ashmanskas) who embark upon helping Michael take on the notorious New York gay dating scene.

“You need a d— pic. You won’t get anywhere on this without one,” Stanley advises Michael in one hilarious scene as they peruse a dating app. Next thing we know, Michael is left red-faced when an attendant walks in on him in the gym changing rooms trying to take an explicit photo. Take a look:

In an interview with People, Starr explained that Uncoupled is “not about being gay or straight. It’s about anyone who’s having to start over again.”

“It’s about a gay man who’s [in his] late 40s, who’s single in New York – and it’s an experience that I can relate to and know a lot of people that have gone through it,” he continued. 

Star also noted the show will be viewers will find plenty to relate to in the story of grief, loss and finding new love, because “I think we’ve all had break-ups, and it’s about a break-up.”

Uncoupled debuts on 29 July 2022 on Netflix.

Images: Netflix