Skip to main content
  • TotalFilm
  • Edge
  • Newsarama
  • Retrogamer
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Trending
  • Best Netflix Movies
  • Movie Release Dates
  • Best movies on Disney Plus
  • Best Netflix Shows
Don't miss these
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Marvel TV Shows Spider-Noir is the "same character, different version": "It's not a continuation of Into The Spider-Verse"
One Piece
Netflix The 25 best shows on Netflix to watch in 2026
The Boroughs
Sci-Fi Shows New Netflix sci-fi series from the Duffer Brothers about aliens at a retirement home gets first look and release date
Nicolas Cage as Ben Reilly in Spider-Noir
Superhero Shows Nicolas Cage wanted to play his 1930s superhero detective in Spider-Noir like a "spider pretending to be a person"
Walton Goggins as the Ghoul in Fallout season 2
TV The 25 best shows on Amazon Prime Video to watch right now
Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan in Beef season 2
Drama Shows Season 2 of hit Netflix show with 98% Rotten Tomatoes score unveils its White Lotus-esque first trailer
David Lynch as Gordon Cole and Laura Dern as Diane in Twin Peaks: The Return.
Streaming Services The 25 best shows on Paramount Plus to watch right now
Emma D'Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen in House of the Dragon season 3
TV The 30 best shows on HBO Max to watch right now
The Last of Us season 2
Sci-Fi Shows The Last of Us season 3 release date speculation, cast, plot, and more news
Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams
Fantasy Shows Wednesday season 3 release date speculation, cast, plot, and more news
Lucy, the Ghoul, CX404, and Maximus walking toward New Vegas in Fallout season 2
Sci-Fi Shows Fallout season 2 release date, cast, reviews, and everything we else we know
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Marvel TV Shows Spider-Noir release date speculation, cast, trailer, and everything else we know about the live-action Spider-Man show
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Marvel TV Shows Spider-Noir TV creators explain why Nicolas Cage's Spider-Man is "jaded" Ben Reilly instead of "boyish" Peter Parker
Gabriel Basso as Peter Sutherland in The Night Agent season 3
Thriller Shows The Night Agent season 3: everything you need to know about the hit Netflix show's latest season
Spider-Noir perching in a church
Marvel TV Shows All the Spider-Man characters we know about in Spider-Noir
  1. Entertainment
  2. TV
  3. Comedy Shows

Russian Doll's original pitch included roles for Jordan Peele and Alfred Molina

News
By Emily Garbutt published 25 April 2022

Russian Doll was originally a very different show

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Natasha Lyonne in Russian Doll
(Image credit: Netflix)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Russian Doll star and co-creator Natasha Lyonne has revealed some new details about the show's original pitch, including two surprising cast members. 

"It's funny to look at that pitch document. It's so charming, because there's so much in it that is [different]. First of all, Jordan Peele plays heavily in it as a love interest," Lyonne tells EW. "Which is just funny to think that it's such a pre-Jordan Peele, Oscar-winning auteur era, where we're just like, 'Okay, great. So he plays the boyfriend.'"

Lyonne also revealed that the pitch featured a small role for Alfred Molina. "It's a very specific document, and it's almost like a time capsule, because it took so long, even from the time that [Netflix] ordered a script to green lighting us direct to series, and a year went by, and in that time, so much changed," she continued. 

You may like
  • Something Very Bad is Going to Happen Netflix drops first trailer for the Duffer Brothers' new horror show Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen
  • David Lynch as Gordon Cole and Laura Dern as Diane in Twin Peaks: The Return. The 25 best shows on Paramount Plus to watch right now
  • The Last of Us The Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin says "of course" Catherine O'Hara would have returned in season 3

"I still look back at it and share it with [first-time] showrunners and stuff, because it's so sweet. You can tell that our hearts are in it all the way, and it's also really interesting to see how much it's sort of deviated from itself, even in season 1."

The latest season of the hit Netflix show picks up four years after the end of season 1 – Nadia (Lyonne) and Alan (Charlie Barnett) "must sift through their pasts via an unexpected time portal located in one of Manhattan's most iconic locales." Schitt's Creek star Annie Murphy and District 9 star Sharlto Copley have also joined the cast for season 2. 

Russian Doll season 2 is streaming now on Netflix. When you've watched all the episodes, check out our guides to the Russian Doll season 2 ending explained and the Russian Doll season 2 timeline explained. You can also check out our guide to Russian Doll season 3.

Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
CATEGORIES
Netflix Streaming Services
Emily Garbutt
Emily Garbutt
Social Links Navigation
Entertainment Writer

I’m an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering everything film and TV-related. I help bring you all the latest news, features, and reviews, as well as helming our Big Screen Spotlight column. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism.

Read more
Something Very Bad is Going to Happen
Netflix drops first trailer for the Duffer Brothers' new horror show Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen
 
 
David Lynch as Gordon Cole and Laura Dern as Diane in Twin Peaks: The Return.
The 25 best shows on Paramount Plus to watch right now
 
 
The Last of Us
The Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin says "of course" Catherine O'Hara would have returned in season 3
 
 
Bill Skarsgard as Pennywise in It: Welcome to Derry
It: Welcome to Derry season 2: All we know so far about the HBO horror spin-off's second chapter
 
 
Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams
Wednesday season 3 teaser confirms filming has begun, but we're busy thinking about Winona Ryder's casting
 
 
Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler in the Stranger Things season 5 finale
Stranger Things stars poke fun at Conformity Gate in new skit, further proving a ninth episode is not on the way
 
 
Latest in Comedy Shows
Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan in Beef season 2
Season 2 of hit Netflix show with 98% Rotten Tomatoes score unveils its White Lotus-esque first trailer
 
 
Jay McCarrol and Matt Johnson
Nirvanna the Band the Show stars reveal the iconic Wii Shop song only took 5 hours to write, perform, and edit
 
 
Seth MacFarlane in The Orville
Seth MacFarlane says an entire new season of The Orville has been written, but Ted could be dead
 
 
Kaia Gerber as Mitzi, reclining on a sofa, in Palm Royale season 2.
Apple TV cancels Emmy-nominated '60s housewife comedy drama starring Kristen Wiig after 2 seasons
 
 
Community
Community movie got "very close" to filming, but one star's schedule caused a delay
 
 
Charlie Dompler and Pim Pimling in Smiling Friends
Smiling Friends surprisingly ends after three seasons, with its creators citing burnout: "This is not a bit"
 
 
Latest in News
Peak mesa biome
Peak came about after a bet between Content Warning and Another Crab's Treasure leads to see whose game would see more
 
 
Jin, Mugen, and Fuu standing in a row
Samurai Champloo is getting a live-action Netflix series from One Piece studio, and the original creator is on board
 
 
Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise in the It: Welcome to Derry finale
It: Welcome to Derry season 2 is officially in the works, as showrunner promises "something greater" than season 1
 
 
Mass Effect
"F***ing Colonel Shepard dies in Mass Effect 3, and that makes us the Worst Company in America," former EA exec laments
 
 
a ditto human sitting on some logs with pikachu and pichu
Pokopia's unhinged dialogue is tempting me away from Animal Crossing: "It's a pretty nice butt, don't you think?"
 
 
A lady looks shocked.
55-year industry vet made the first CRPG, got laid off, went bankrupt, but "I don't care": "Business does not love you"
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Peak mesa biome
    1
    Peak came about after a bet between Content Warning and Another Crab's Treasure leads to see whose game would see more
  2. 2
    Samurai Champloo is getting a live-action Netflix series from One Piece studio, and the original creator is on board
  3. 3
    It: Welcome to Derry season 2 is officially in the works, as showrunner promises "something greater" than season 1
  4. 4
    "F***ing Colonel Shepard dies in Mass Effect 3, and that makes us the Worst Company in America," former EA exec laments
  5. 5
    55-year industry vet made the first CRPG, got laid off, went bankrupt, but "I don't care": "Business does not love you"

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...