Leo Reich Brings It Gets Worse to Channel 4 and Paramount Plus

British comedian Leo Reich is bringing his dark comedy about young adults struggling with work, relationships and independence to television with It Gets Worse, a six-part series produced by A24. The show follows three former university friends sharing a turbulent life in London, with its launch scheduled across multiple platforms in October 2026.

According to Chortle, Channel 4 released the first trailer on October 8. The series is scheduled to premiere at the London Film Festival on October 14, with all episodes becoming available to stream at 12:01 a.m. on October 22 and a television broadcast scheduled for 10:05 p.m. that night. NickALive reported on October 13 that Paramount+ had set a November 6 premiere.

Reich plays Ethan, a self-absorbed young gay man whose friendships and personal decisions drive much of the comedy. Emily Fairn plays Abi, who is trying to navigate adulthood, while Olive Gray portrays Sam, an aspiring writer with an artistic outlook. The characters face humiliating jobs, complicated romantic lives and the loss of their shared accommodation.

The story begins as the friends confront changes to their living arrangements after their time together at university. Their landlord is selling the property, forcing them to leave, according to Chortle's October 8 report. Rather than following a conventional story-of-the-week format, the series traces the consequences of the characters' flawed decisions and strained relationships.

Reich described the personal interests behind his approach to the comedy in an interview with GQ published October 13.

"That was really the main impetus, sitting down for a bit and going, ‘What do I feel like I really wanna see on TV?,’" Reich said. "And it turns out it’s really self-involved and quite objectionable 24-year-olds having minor arguments with each other, experiencing bad sex and drinking too much. So I don’t know what that says about me."

The comedian said the characters exaggerate recognizable weaknesses rather than reproduce the lives of specific people. He explained that Ethan draws partly on his own experiences of becoming independent as a young gay man, while emphasizing that the show's storylines are not autobiographical.

Reich also discussed the influence of earlier ensemble comedies, including Girls, Peep Show, Insecure and Fresh Meat. Those comparisons reflect the show's focus on dysfunctional friendships and everyday selfishness, although its creator has resisted presenting it as a definitive portrait of an entire generation.

In an interview with The Guardian published October 9, Reich questioned whether people born into the same generation necessarily share a single identity.

"I’m sceptical of the idea that generations have any real unifying features across the board, so I don’t want it to be like: this is a gen Z sitcom!" Reich said.

The series nevertheless explores the uncertainty facing young adults as they enter working life. Reich identified financial pressure, political instability and environmental concerns as part of the backdrop against which the characters attempt to build independent lives.

"Trying to say this without being cringe, but it’s a very specific time to be looking down the barrel of the rest of your life," Reich said.

He also described the weakening appeal of traditional markers of adulthood, including marriage and career progression, as contributing to a broader atmosphere of anxiety. The show approaches these concerns through personal dysfunction and uncomfortable humor rather than a conventional issue-led drama.

The supporting cast includes Sean Delaney, Dane Williams, India Mullen and John Tothill, an Edinburgh Comedy Award 2025 nominee, according to NickALive. Guest appearances include Andrew Scott, Lena Dunham, Amelia Dimoldenberg, Blake Harrison, Vicki Pepperdine and Clayton Pettet, also known as Babymorocco. Novelist Zadie Smith narrates the series.

Reich's television breakthrough follows his 2022 Edinburgh Fringe debut, Literally, Who Cares?!, a stand-up show built around an exaggerated, self-involved Generation Z character. The performance helped establish his reputation for combining generational satire with observations about contemporary life. He later appeared in Lena Dunham's Netflix series Too Much before developing It Gets Worse.

The new comedy brings Reich's stand-up sensibility to an ensemble television format, with Channel 4 and A24 behind the production. Its London Film Festival premiere is scheduled for October 14, followed by its planned streaming and television releases later that month and its reported Paramount+ debut on November 6.