Prentice Penny Reflects on the End of ‘Insecure,’ Spin-Off Talk, and an Upcoming Western Episode

Last Sunday, HBO’s hit dramedy Insecure began its ascension to TV’s sweet hereafter. It’s been a long journey from broken pussies and freestyle rappin’ at Issa’s L.A. flat and these characters know it. “What would you do if you knew everything was coming to an end?” Kelli (Natasha Rothwell) coos into her podcast microphone.

Earlier in its fifth season premiere, Kelli learns that the organizers of their Stanford alumni reunion have mistook her for dead, and while Kelli is usually seen as a foil to the seriousness of her circle, she seemed to take it really hard. She contemplates her legacy—how she’s seen and how she’s lived her life thus far. They’re big questions that the show’s been wrestling with for its entire celebrated run, but the showrunner’s hardly wanted us to feel like anything is actually final. What is a finale but a moment in time where one chapter ends and another begins?

Prentice Penny, who has served as producer, writer and showrunner of Insecure, is quite optimistic about the show’s meaning both within and outside the tube. These sorts of conversations about where a show will end up fascinate Penny up to a point, but his is a more sobering read: “Our show is birthed out of shows like Living Single and Girlfriends. They’re complements. They’re ancestors to this. So I’m excited to see what will be inspired by our show.”

Read more at The Daily Beast.