Rita Wilson says she expects to return as Evie Michaels, mother of Allison Williams’ Marnie, when HBO revives “Girls” for a limited run next summer. The “Sleepless in Seattle” actress told People she has heard Lena Dunham plans to bring her back, and she said she would not doubt it. Wilson praised Dunham as one of the most talented people she has worked with and said she “would do anything for her.” She also credited Williams, saying she felt lucky to play her mother. Neither HBO nor Dunham has confirmed Wilson’s participation.
HBO announced the revival last Tuesday. Dunham will again play Hannah, with Williams, Jemima Kirke as Jessa, Zosia Mamet as Shoshanna and Andrew Rannells as Elijah. The network ordered five episodes, with Judd Apatow returning as executive producer. Production begins in summer 2027, a decade after the original finale. Jenni Konner, co-showrunner on the original series, will not return. Questions remain about the wider ensemble. HBO’s announcement made no mention of Adam Driver, and there is no word yet on Christopher Abbott or Alex Karpovsky.
Dunham framed the project as a story she had to tell. The cast always said they would only return if something specific was “burning to tell,” she said in a statement. She added that the characters started talking to her in the shower around her fortieth birthday. HBO comedy chief Amy Gravitt said Dunham will turn her gaze from the tumult of one’s twenties to turning forty.
The series carries weight for both the network and its creator. “Girls” ran from 2012 to 2017, earned 19 Emmy nominations and won two. Dunham has kept working, directing “Catherine Called Birdy” and co-creating “Camping” and “Too Much,” but none of it has matched the cultural reach of her breakout.
The revival is also among the first production announcements HBO has made since Skydance-owned Paramount took over its parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. Wilson’s remarks offer the first hint of how the new episodes might reach beyond the four central friends, though the character’s return remains unofficial.
