The Adam Friedland Show

Development

From 2016 to 2022, Adam Friedland, Stavros Halkias, and Nick Mullen co-hosted Cum Town, which The New Yorker called one of the most successful comedy podcasts of the decade.^[2] When Halkias announced that he was departing Cum Town in June of 2022,^[3] Friedland and Mullen ended the show and revealed plans for a spin-off production—The Adam Friedland Show—a YouTube talk show to be hosted by Friedland and produced by Mullen. Turning Friedland, who was often the butt of jokes on Cum Town, into the star of a new program, began as mostly a joke; though, over time he grew into the role.^[2]

In August of 2022, Friedland and Mullen began releasing test episodes of The Adam Friedland Show on Patreon while the set was being constructed. These episodes were shot on the unfurnished studio, and episodes of a companion podcast The Adam Friedland Show Podcast began being released as well.^[4]

Season one

The set for the show was completed in the fall of 2022 and modeled after that of The Dick Cavett Show.^[5] The show aired its first official episode on Halloween, 2022, with Adam hosting in a loose brown suit. The first episode saw Adam, co-host Nick Mullen, and guest Shane Gillis all in Halloween costumes throughout the episode, with Mullen as Dracula and Gillis as Frankenstein.^[6]

Following the second episode, Mullen stopped appearing as co-host to focus on producing the show and acting in character bits. Most episodes for the rest of the season featured an opening pre-taped sketch taking place behind the scenes of the show, usually with Friedland as himself and Mullen as either himself, the show's producer Dracula, or political blogger Jeff Tiedrich's demented nephew Marty Tiedrich. Two later episodes in the season, the Rob Schneider episode and the Paul Schrader episode, each opened on a more elaborate short film. The Schrader episode featured Adam Friedland's Taxi Driver, an elaborate short about Friedland making a Taxi Driver parody in which he plays all the parts,^[7] and the Schneider episode featured Nick & Adam 1998, a short film written and directed by Mullen about 11-year-old versions of Friedland and Mullen going to see the movie The Waterboy. Sopranos star Drea DeMatteo played Friedland's mother.^[8]

Friedland said that in 2023, he "decided to start trying to be a good interviewer."^[9]

On January 25, 2025, Mullen departed from the show.^[10] Podcast episodes stopped being released, and the show pivoted to focusing on the YouTube talk show. The show no longer featured an opening sketch, instead just focusing on Friedland's interview.

In February 2025, Friedland began releasing a series of episodes called "The Lost Episodes." These were interviews that were recorded in the studio with Drea DeMatteo, Julian Casablancas, Tom Fontana, and Hasan Piker that weren't released within the initial Season One run for various reasons.

Season two

In May 2025, trailers began to release for the show,^[11] and Friedland began a press tour with a profile in GQ,^[1] as well as numerous podcast appearances promoting his show and personal brand.^{[citation needed]}

On May 28, 2025, Friedland released a surprise announcement, revealing that he had been working on a revamped second season of the show. This season would have a regular weekly release of an hour-long talk show episode. This was a large change compared to the first season's sporadic release over a period of over two years, oftentimes with gaps in production of several months.^{[citation needed]}

Friedland's new season has reached mainstream acclaim, with several favorable write-ups praising his offbeat interview style, the avant-garde production of the show, and his hard-hitting questions. The New Yorker described The Adam Friedland Show as "subversive" and "irresistibly funny".^[12]

Friedland's August 27, 2025 interview with Congressman Ritchie Torres, in which Friedland emotionally confronted the politician over his support for Israel, drew a positive response and press coverage, with some calling it a breakthrough moment.^[13][14][15] The show also received considerable attention for scoring an interview with New York City mayor elect Zohran Mamdani immediately following his victory.^[16]

Season 1 (2022–2024)

The lost episodes

Following Nick Mullen's departure from the show in early 2025, The Adam Friedland Show released a quartet of episodes billed as "The Lost Episodes," inspired by the title of Chappelle's Show's "Lost Episodes."^[18] These are interviews that were filmed in studio between 2023 and 2024, with new introductions from Friedland filmed in 2025.

Season 2 (2025–)