TRAILER: The new Ricky Gervais show - classic or cringe-y?

From The Office to Extras to the podcasts, we here at ITM have come to expect the goods from comedy entrepreneur Ricky Gervais. However, his public persona has come to rankle some fans, and recent series Life’s Too Short didn’t quite hit the highs of its predecessors. Not long ago, a voiceover promising “the new comedy/drama from Ricky Gervais” would be met with cheers, but now the reception is somewhat more divisive. Which brings us to Derek, Gervais’s new show for Channel 4 in the UK.

Once again, Gervais is under fire (before the show has even screened) for mocking people with disabilities. As expected, he’s having none of it, responding: “Derek is a fictional character and is defined by his creator. Me. If I say I don’t mean him to be disabled then that’s it. A fictional doctor can’t come along and prove me wrong.”

You can check out the trailer for Derek below. The show features Gervais’s long-time podcast sparring partner Karl Pilkington in a starring role, which is reason enough to watch. Not sure how much ‘acting’ Karl is doing, though. The Office and Extras co-creator Stephen Merchant has no hand in Derek.