‘Veep’ Cast to Reunite for Table Read of Viral Episode at WisDems Event Hosted by Stephen Colbert (Exclusive)
When President Joe Biden announced he was dropping his 2024 re-election bid and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democratic presidential nominee, Veep started to see a resurgence both in Max viewership and on social media. And one of the most recirculated and memed moments in the wake of the Biden-Harris news was a scene when Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ character finds out she’s going to be president of the United States.
Since so many people have been rewatching that Veep scene, Louis-Dreyfus and the cast of the hit, Emmy-winning political comedy have now decided to reunite for a virtual table read of that episode in support of “helping Dems win up and down the ballot in Wisconsin,” the star and executive producer announced on Thursday, along with the Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Ben Wikler.
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On Sept. 29 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT, castmembers from Veep will perform a table read of the show’s third season episode, “Crate,” hosted by Stephen Colbert. Louis-Dreyfus will be joined by Tony Hale, Anna Chlumsky, Reid Scott, Timothy Simons, Sam Richardson, Matt Walsh, Gary Cole, Sarah Rutherland, Clea DuVall and Sufe Bradshaw. Tickets for what’s described as a one-of-a-kind grassroots fundraising event are available to be reserved at wisdems.org/veep, where donations can also be made.
“Crate” was the season three episode (which aired in 2015) where Vice President Selina Meyer (Louis-Dreyfus) finds out the current POTUS is stepping down, elevating her to the Oval Office. She is elated that her lifelong dream is becoming a reality and when she brings her bagman Gary (Tony Hale) into the bathroom to whisper the news to him, he is also so excited that he gets a nosebleed.
The scene was one of several that was recirculated amid Harris’ elevation to the top of the Democratic party’s ticket this summer, leading to a Veep-surgence that the cast is now getting behind in a big way for Harris and running mate Tim Walz.
2014: Selina Meyer becomes the first female U.S. president in Veep. #HBO50 pic.twitter.com/9tZ4UiRnTn
— HBO (@HBO) November 8, 2022
“We tried to find an old episode where President Meyer accused immigrants of eating dogs and cats. But back when we were making Veep, that seemed insane and over the top,” said Louis-Dreyfus to The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday.
“We’re thrilled to team up with the incomparable Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the cast of Veep to deliver this year’s unforgettable and hilarious live virtual WisDems event, this time hosted by the one and only Stephen Colbert,” Wikler said in a statement to THR. “Our grassroots supporters power our statewide organizing, and it’s that organizing strength that helps us elect Democrats and chart a new way forward in Wisconsin. Events like this celebrate our long-time supporters and let us reach even further to the people who will fuel our work to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, Tammy Baldwin and Democrats across Wisconsin this November.”
“I’m a Veep fan and a Wisconsin voter turnout superfan, so I want to do my part,” added Colbert, who then quipped: “Plus, I’m hoping to meet Julia Louis-Dreyfus. She seems nice.”
For the 2020 Election, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin led Hollywood in a virtual reunion movement that saw casts ranging from Princess Bride to Happy Days coming together to benefit the key battleground state. A mini West Wing cast reunion event — spearheaded by Wisconsin native and star Bradley Whitford — ignited the high-profile film and TV reunions that would ultimately go on to raise more than $7 million for the state’s Democratic party. Several Veep events would follow, including an entire cast reunion that raised more than $500,000, followed by a crossover event with The West Wing cast in 2022 for the high-stakes midterm elections.
“These events were not about the warm fuzzies of awareness,” Wikler told THR back in 2020 of how they would apply the fundraising movement to future election cycles. “They were about raising money that would benefit strategically targeted electoral work, like signing up volunteers and completing thousands of shifts doing virtual phone banking and text banking. It was a way that entertainers and cultural icons and artists could use their talents to draw people in who would then be mobilized to do some of the highest-impact work anyone could do in the country.”
He added, “If you look at the math coming out of this election, it is crystal clear that no effort was wasted in the content.”
Recently, Louis-Dreyfus, showrunner David Mandel and Veep creator Armando Ianucci have all recently spoken about the Veep comparisons to real-life politics with the 2024 election, making the political comedy more timely than ever, even though it’s been off the air after a seven season run since 2019. “Today, there may be more people checking out Veep, and I can’t think of anything better,” Mandel recently told THR. “I hope they are enjoying. The crazier politics gets, the more Veep holds up!”
This is the latest example of Hollywood coming out for Harris-Walz. Louis-Dreyfus hosted a panel during the week of the Democratic National Convention with the country’s eight Democratic governors, and the cast of Shonda Rhimes’ hit ABC political drama Scandal will be reuniting this weekend to support Harris’ Reproductive Freedom Bus Tour, among other events.
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