‘The Burbs’ Series Creator On If The Show Connects To 1989 Movie, That Finale Cameo & Season 2 Ideas: “So Much More Mystery To Unfold”

As Keke Palmer and Jack Whitehall get settled into The ‘Burbs, series creator Celeste Hughey hopes to revisit Hinkley Hills soon.

While discussing her Peacock series reboot of the 1989 horror comedy with Deadline, the Emmy nominee teased that “there’s so much more mystery to unfold” in a potential sophomore season.

“I would love a Season 2, and we really wrote to continue the story,” said Hughey. “I think you’ll find that there’s a really compelling cliffhanger at the end. I think people will really attach these characters and really want to come back and hang out with them.”

Now available to stream, The ‘Burbs sees new parents Samira (Palmer) and Rob (Whitehall) move into his parents’ house in the suburbs, where the housebound mom bonds with her neighbors over the mystery of a missing young girl who lived at the creepy Victorian across the street.

While the series serves as more of a spiritual sequel to the Joe Dante-helmed original, which starred Tom Hanks, Carrie Fisher, Bruce Dern and Corey Feldman, the film is not directly connected to the show.

“You know, an original idea around how I wanted to adapt it, there was a moment where I was like, ‘OK, can Carrie Fisher and Tom Hanks’ son be the same age in modern time?’” explained Hughey. “I was trying to figure out how to tie it together. And then ultimately, it felt best to create an entirely new world with new characters, but still that echo of, it’s still called Hinkley Hills, but the street’s a different name. The facades of the houses are different, but we wanted to have that just DNA tied to it, but still not have it be of the same world.”

Featuring a cameo from Wendy Schaal, who played housewife Bonnie Rumsfield in the film, Hughey explained that she “really wanted to honor” the movie’s legacy.

“So, having her cameo is amazing,” she said. “Having a little Tom Hanks moment as the founder of Hinkley Hills, H. Horace Hinckley, in the first episode, and then there’s another really great cameo in the finale, which I’m not gonna spoil for you.”

Read on about how Celeste Hughey updated suburban horror in The ‘Burbs for 2026, now available to stream on Peacock.

DEADLINE: I was a huge fan of the original movie. I watched it with my dad all the time when I was a kid. What was your association with the original and what made you want to update it for a new generation? 

CELESTE HUGHEY: Well first, I hope you were able to pick up on Easter eggs because I love when fans of the movie watch it, and they can see stuff in it that were like little winks and nods. It came out when I was quite young, so I watched it when I was probably too young to understand the awesome commentary and the humor. It was terrifying to me. But revisiting it as an adult, I saw so much possibility for commentary, and I think it’s still so timely. And then Brian Grazer, who produced the original movie, and Seth MacFarlane, Fuzzy Door, they wanted to make it into a movie originally during COVID, and then they started talking more about it and said it should be a series, and then I was brought on to adapt it. I very quickly had a very clear vision of what it should be because the movie, it’s about kind of the community coming together and terrorizing the outsiders of the neighborhood, but I wanted to come in from the outsider perspective and find what it’s like to ingratiate themselves into a community, and then, using the original DNA of the film to kind of inspire a whole new story, a whole new world and new characters. But as I mentioned with the old fans, I think you’ll see throughout it that we kept the essence alive, and I think Keke was an immediate person who I wanted to star in this. I have a text message from my best friend in 2022, where we’re like, “Who should it be?” And we both say Keke Palmer at the same time. She’s just everything. She has the same charisma we love Tom Hanks for, and I felt would be the perfect person to carry that torch. 

DEADLINE: I love how the idea of suburbia has changed over the years, like the fact that they’re moving into his parents’ house because that’s the only way they can afford to own. Can you tell me a little bit about how you updated that part? 

HUGHEY: In the past, the suburbs was the dream. That was the goal, was to get that space, the yard, the picket fence, and a great place to grow up, as we say in the show. But I think for me, I’m in my late 30s and a lot of my friends had kids in the past several years and they found, “OK, the city of my youth where I could go out and be connected in this community of people my age around me is fading.” They don’t have space. They have a four-story walkup, you can’t have kids there. So, a lot of my friends moved back home, to be closer to family, for the support or to even live at home because they couldn’t afford a house otherwise. So that to me was kind of the way in the modern times, less for the safety, and more for the actual practicality of raising a kid, not in the city, but in a place that they could have some help from family or support from the community. 

DEADLINE: And you said Keke was the only person who could play this role. What was it like casting her and also Jack Whitehall, finding that pairing? 

HUGHEY: Keke, her involvement goes way back before she even knew she was involved. Essentially, as I said, I immediately knew I wanted it to be her. I pitched her to the studio and they very quickly were like, “Oh, absolutely, that’s a great idea.” We have a mutual friend and I saw her at a birthday party, and I walked out of the bathroom, and we locked eyes, and I just said, “Hi, how are you?” And then she said, “Good, how are you?” And in my head, I was like, “She doesn’t know, in exactly a year, she’s gonna read my script that’s not written yet, and we’re gonna work together.” And then almost exactly a year later, we sent her the script and, and she and I Zoomed, and very immediately, she understood this character. I think she was excited to play a new mom since she has a 2-year-old, Leo, who’s the cutest kid. And she just really saw the opportunity to discuss these themes, and she loved the tone and really loved the character. I had written the character with her voice in mind. nd then when it came to casting all these amazing people around her, Jack, I’d only known a little bit about him before I’d seen some of his stand-up. And when he came in for the chemistry read, they instantly were making each other laugh very naturally. They would do the scenes, and Jack ad-libbed some stuff and Keke just cracked up, and that was kind of what made us say, “OK, there is something here, this is a couple we’d want to watch.” We actually adjusted the story a little bit for this couple, we made them a new couple versus a couple that have been together for a little bit. Because they still have this energy of like, we’re still getting to know each other, but we adore each other and we have this great chemistry, but there’s still some stuff to find out about each other. So, that is infused in the story as well. And then, we have comedic geniuses in this cast, not just Jack, but we brought in all these amazing comedic character actors, Paula [Pell], Mark [Proksch] and Julia [Duffy]. I’ve worked with Julia before on Palm Royale. Everyone was so excited about Colin Robinson. Being on the show, and Paula, I’ve just always loved. And they really were excited, I think, to be able to show their full range of talent. These characters all carry secrets, they have shame, they’re loners, they’re weirdos, and for all of them to be able to show pathos and show off their dramatic side, I think was really exciting for all of them, and for Jack too. And Kapil [Talwalkar] is so awesome as well, and he and Jack, in their chemistry read, they literally had this moment where I think Jack’s computer froze and then came back, and they just started giggling hysterically, and they became really good friends as well. And so, it was just really building a group of good people, and people who could do the comedy, could do the drama. I think the cast had so much fun, and I think the fun comes across in the show as well. 

DEADLINE: I also loved Wendy Schaal’s cameo. That was so cool to see how she continues the legacy of the original film in the series.

HUGHEY: Yeah, again, we really wanted to honor that. So, having her cameo is amazing, having a little Tom Hanks moment as the founder of Hinkley Hills, H. Horace Hinckley, in the first episode, and then there’s another really great cameo in the finale, which I’m not gonna spoil for you.

DEADLINE: I was curious, does the show connect to the original at all? Do you want it to connect? Could Judy [ Schaal] be like Bonnie’s brainy twin sister or something like that? 

HUGHEY: You know, an original idea around how I wanted to adapt it, there was a moment where I was like, “OK, can Carrie Fisher and Tom Hanks’ son be the same age in modern time?” I was trying to figure out how to tie it together. And then ultimately, it felt best to create an entirely new world with new characters, but still that echo of, it’s still called Hinkley Hills, but the street’s a different name. The facades of the houses are different, but we wanted to have that just DNA tied to it, but still not have it be of the same world. So, we had thought maybe the librarian is Bonnie Rumsfield all grown up, but we wanted to be a different character, entirely. I love that, her brainy, her brainy sister. 

DEADLINE: As far as the mystery, it seems like Rob and Naveen appear to know more than what they’re letting on about what happened across the street. Can you tell me about that? 

HUGHEY: I think it was fun in crafting the story to give everyone a secret and I feel like you find that every character, at a certain point, you are suspicious of, and it keeps people on your toes. And I think it’s a common trope that the husband did it. So, I wanted to make sure that we explored that, but I think you’ll be surprised as you continue watching, just how the story weaves.

DEADLINE: I also love Justin Kirk as the creepy neighbor, and him and his wife’s dynamic feels so reminiscent of the original movie and that family across the street. Can you tell me a little bit about that? 

HUGHEY: I’ve actually known Justin for 14 years at this point, and I always thought of him to play Gary. I was like, again, “In a year, your agent’s gonna send you the script.” So, we called the character Justin Kirk in the room. To me, it was like it, it can only be Justin, and he has that like suave, handsome, debonair, but kind of creepy air that I think the doctor in the original movie kind of has, where you’re like, “I think I like you. You do have a certain charm to you, but you’re also terrifying me at the same time.” And when Justin read the script, he was so sweet. He was like, “I don’t say yes just because I’m friends with somebody. It’s because I really like the story and the script.” And so, I was so grateful that he said yes. I feel like he is such an incredible actor. Even before I knew him, I loved him in Angels in America and Weeds, and I think he just adds such great heft and gravitas. All the directors were excited to work with him. All the actors loved to work with him, and he’s just the best. 

DEADLINE: Yeah, he’s really fun to watch. Is there any possibility for a Season 2? 

HUGHEY: I would love a Season 2, and we really wrote to continue the story. I think you’ll find that there’s a really compelling cliffhanger at the end. I think people will really attach these characters and really want to come back and hang out with them. And there’s so much more mystery to unfold in The ‘Burbs. There’s endless inspiration as well. I think everyone has a crazy neighbor story. I love asking people, “Who’s the most insane person, the weirdest person you’ve lived next to?” I had one neighbor shoot another neighbor in the leg because the other neighbor was trespassing on their property. I live in a cul-de-sac, and crazy stuff happens all the time. It’s quiet, but when it’s not quiet, it’s gunshots basically. But there’s so much more we want to tell, and I really hope that Peacock gives us a second season.