The cast of the popular political satire Veep recently reunited for a special fundraiser hosted by Stephen Colbert, aimed at supporting Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. The reunion featured a playful dig at Donald Trump and raised an impressive $735,000 (£551,000), as reported by the Hollywood Reporter.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus reprised her role as Selina Meyer, the ambitious and self-centred politician at the core of the sitcom. Given the show’s satirical nature and the current political environment in the US, it was no surprise that jokes about Trump were part of the event. The reunion kicked off with a message from Gary Cole, who played senior strategist Kent Davison in Veep, stating: “No dogs or cats were eaten during the making of this program.”
The humour extended to references about Trump’s past claims regarding Haitian immigrants and their dietary habits, which were echoed in a joke on a recent Saturday Night Live episode. Matt Walsh, who portrayed press secretary Mike McLintock, made a tongue-in-cheek statement affirming that “Kamala Harris is not Selina Meyer and Selina Meyer is not Kamala Harris,” injecting a light-hearted tone to the proceedings.
The parallels between Harris’s political journey and Meyer’s fictional rise to power have not gone unnoticed, especially following Joe Biden’s decision to step down from the race and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. A viral clip from Veep resurfaced on social media, depicting Meyer announcing her own presidential bid after learning of Biden’s exit.
During the reunion, the cast performed a reading of the script from a season three episode titled “Crate,” capturing the essence of the show and its memorable moments. Alongside Louis-Dreyfus, Cole, and Walsh, the reunion featured other original cast members including Tony Hale, Anna Chlumsky, and Timothy Simons, among others.
Larry David also made a special appearance, filling in for Kevin Dunn, who was unable to attend the event. Known for his role in Curb Your Enthusiasm, David added his trademark comedic touch when he struggled to unmute himself on the Zoom call, much to the amusement of the audience.
This isn’t the first time that parallels have been drawn between Veep and real-life politics. In a previous instance, creator Armando Iannucci highlighted similarities between a plotline in his show The Thick of It and a policy proposal by the Conservative Party, showcasing the blurred lines between fiction and reality in political arenas.
The Veep reunion served as a nostalgic and entertaining event for fans of the acclaimed series, blending humour with a touch of political satire to support a worthy cause.