History Of The World, Part II: Everything We Know So Far About The Mel Brooks Series
When the seminal cinematic comedy "History of the World, Part I" was released in 1981, Mel Brooks and company teased that Part II was on the way. However, the cheeky teaser was only meant to be a bit rather than an earnest promise. Despite carrying "Part I" as part of the title, there was never an actual plan in place to do another installment of the episodic parody film that delivered Brooks' version of world history from the Stone Age to the French Revolution. The title was actually a reference to "The History of the World, Volume 1" by Sir Walter Raleigh, who was a prisoner in the Tower of London that was beheaded before he could write the other four intended volumes.
Then again, that's also how the gag about a "Spaceballs" sequel started out in 1987. Decades later, the prolific writer took his talents to G4 in 2008 for "Spaceballs: The Animated Series." Now, the creative genius behind "The Producers," "Blazing Saddles," and "Young Frankenstein" is returning to the small screen (or even smaller screen, if you watch it on your phone) with "History of the World, Part II" after making fans wait over 40 years for the next lesson.
Whether you decide to start studying now by revisiting the original movie and getting "The Spanish Inquisition" stuck in your head all over again or you pull an all-nighter and cram the night before, here's everything we know so far about the upcoming sequel series.
When and where to watch History of the World, Part II
In Fall of 2021, the legendary Mel Brooks announced that he would be teaming up with Hulu to bring "History of the World, Part II" to the masses. Rather than a movie like the first installment, the sequel will be an eight-episode series.
At the time of the initial announcement, there was no release date revealed. However, when the streaming service dropped the first four images from the show (which can be seen throughout this article) in January of 2023, the press release shared that it will premiere in the Spring of 2023. Unfortunately, it doesn't get more specific than that, but we'll be sure to provide an update as soon as the official debut has been scheduled.
What History of the World, Part II will be about
Just like the original film, "History of the World, Part II" will feature "a variety of sketches that take us through different periods of human history." While the press release doesn't get specific about what time periods the show will cover, the first images from the show seem to indicate that we'll visit America in the 1970s (based on Wanda Sykes' orange bell bottoms) and Cold War-era Russia (based on Ike Barinholtz's "Crimson Wave" poster).
And though Mel Brooks promised Hitler on ice, a Viking funeral, and "Jews in Space" in the fake preview for the sequel in 1981, it's unclear whether the veteran comedy writer will deliver. Although, the picture of Sykes, Barinholtz, and Nick Kroll does appear to depict the trio in front of an ice rink, possibly at the Winter Olympics in the 1980s or early 1990s due to their hairstyles. The filmmaker has always been known to push the boundaries of what he could get away with when it comes to his comedy, so Hitler on ice may actually be a possibility. It's not like he hasn't already made the genocidal dictator the star of a fictional Broadway musical.
What we know about the cast of History of the World, Part II
At 96 years old, it doesn't appear that Mel Brooks is slowing down in his advanced years because the consummate performer will naturally return to star in "History of the World, Part II." And similar to the first edition of this hilarious history homework, he'll almost definitely be playing multiple roles in the movie.
Although, he won't be doing all of the comedic heavy liftings by himself. "The Mindy Project" and "Blockers" star Ike Barinholtz, Wanda Sykes of "black-ish" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," and eclectic funnyman Nick Kroll from "Big Mouth," "The League," and the "Sing" movies (seen below in the full image from the header of this slide) join Brooks as the leads and the writing team of the new show. There will also likely be a number of cameos to round out the casts of each sketch, but details on who we can expect have yet to be confirmed.
Hulu
Behind the scenes, the four leads also serve as executive producers for this Searchlight Television and 20th Television production alongside David Stassen, Kevin Salter, David Greenbaum, and Christie Smith.