It was announced yesterday that The Office star Rainn Wilson is helming a new scripted comedy show called Hollywood and Vine, which will feature popular Vine“stars” Jerry Purpdrank, Simone Shepherd, Lele Pons, Christian DelGrosso, and Curtis Lepore. It will be scripted by It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia writer Lance Krall.

Wilson, who’s producing the show with this company SoulPancake, explained the reason for this show’s existence:

We believe this show is going to be the first to celebrate these amazing, talented Viners in an authentic way and bring their style of humor to a broader audience. Plus, who doesn’t love a six-second twerk?

But overshadowing that scintillating detail is the fact that Lepore was accused of rape last year by fellow viner Jessi Smiles. She claims he raped her while she was unconscious with a concussion, after the two had broken up.

Lepore, one of the most popular people on Vine for reasons that defy logic and taste, was arrested in October and released on bail. He pled not guilty in January, and tweeted at his fans not to “rush to judge” him. He also shifted the blame to Smiles, calling the accusation a “publicity stunt.” In February, he took a plea deal, which means he was not found innocent of rape, but instead pled guilty to felony assault.

According to TMZ, Lepore only has to complete 24 days of community service and and a year of counseling, then his charge will be whittled down to a misdemeanor assault. After his plea deal, he tweeted this piece of garbage.

Here’s a recent clip from Lepore, so you can get a taste of what passes for humor on Vine, and what will be brought to a broader audience with Wilson's show. 

Thankfully, some fellow viners have called Lepore out. 

In a piece for Thought Catalog, Rob Fee exploresHollywood’s collective dismissal of rape victims and elevation of perpetrators if it means making money off what the kids like:

Ask Rainn Wilson how much it bothers him that Curtis Lepore pleaded down rape charges. How many followers on Vine does he have? Oh then no, it doesn’t matter. We aren’t a country of second chances, we’re a country that will look past anything to make money. If we can stick Charlie Sheen in a show called Anger Management after his history of abuse, assault, and reckless behavior, then we need to just admit that victims mean nothing. We keep empowering abusers and belittling victims and it’s repulsive.

This news is especially depressing on the heels of Hannibal Buress’s callout of Bill Cosby’s long list of rape accusations. You’d think with all the money and brand endorsements being thrown at Vine personalities, they’d have people around them to tell them when to shut their mouths and act professional.

However, as Death and Taxespointed out, Wilson tweeted his own tasteless rape joke back in 2012.

H/T Death and Taxes | Photo via Kristin Dos Santos/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Hold on to your wands and lightsabers. A connection between the Wizarding World and a galaxy far, far away came to light Tuesday thanks to a recent visitor to theStar Wars: Episode VII set.

According toITV, actor Daniel Radcliffe admitted to visiting the set of the new Star Wars film at Pinewood studios recently. He shared his thoughts on the visit while on the red carpet at the premiere of his new movie Horns.

“I was so excited, 'cause I literally just watched the original Star Wars movies very recently, so I was like a new fan going on set. But I got to meet Harrison Ford and have a chat, and he was lovely. It was great,” Radcliffe said.

It’s fun to hear that theHarry Potter star is a recent fan of the franchise and was excited about his visit. However, the best part was learning that Star Wars actually wasn’t the reason behind his visit at all.

“Most people would be excited about seeing the Star Wars set but I went out because all my friends were working there 'cause it's the Potter crew, they've basically just moved onto that, so I was going to see all of them,” he said.

While some fans may be disappointed that Radcliffe’s visit has nothing to do with a planned cameo in the upcoming film, they can at least take comfort in knowing that there is a connection between the two major franchises. It looks like Episode VII is in the very capable hands of the Potter crew at Pinewood. May the magic be with them. Always.

H/TITV | Photo byGage Skidmore/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Trevor Noah is revered as one of the most talented, fast-rising young stars in the African comedy scene. He’s starting to make waves stateside.

Noah—who was named to Forbes’s 2013 list of African celebrities to watch—balances smart, hilarious observations with intimate insight to dissect subject matter that may otherwise be considered too painful or sensitive.

In the video above, the comedian recounts how difficult it was for him growing up as the child of a mixed race couple in South Africa during apartheid. While it’s a topic most may struggle find humor in, Noah does so flawlessly comparing the risk of his mother being caught with him to the illegality of a bag of weed. He follows that up by discussing how taken by African-American vernacular he is. He doesn’t call it hip; doesn’t even criticize it as being slang or Ebonics. To him being black simply means being yourself and being accepted. Later in the routine, with the same grace, Noah effortlessly tells one of the funniest Hitler jokes you may ever hear.

His humor contains the same honesty you’ll find in the work of fellow black comedians Dave Chappelle and Hannibal Buress. Noah’s brand of comedy is similarly important because while he encourages laughter, he also fosters conversations about race, immigration, and class.

His talent has not gone unnoticed. Beginning in December, Noah will join The Daily Show with Jon Stewartas a regular contributor. 

The Best F#@king News Team welcomes new correspondent @hasanminhaj and new contributor @Trevornoah! http://t.co/RyhIVvqTMD

— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) October 10, 2014

Thank you so much for all your love and support. Being a part of @TheDailyShow is such an honour. I can't wait to start.

— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) October 11, 2014

Just a few years ago Noah became the first South African standup to perform on either The Tonight Show or The Late Show—let alone both.

In 2013 his Showtime special, Trevor Noah: African American premiered in the U.S. to positive reviews. Last fall, Deadlinereported that Will and Jada Smith’s production company, Overbrook Entertainment, had succeeded in selling a half-hour sitcom starring Noah to Fox. The show is set to be written by former Modern Family writer Sameer Gardezi.

With Noah and other young black comedians like Jerrod Carmichael and Jessica Williams starting to get the shine they rightfully deserve, the American comedy scene is going to get a lot more diverse very soon. Follow Noah on Twitter and if you want to see him live, and happen to reside in Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa, he’s on tour in those countries right now.

Screengrab via YouTube

Aziz Ansari has established a precedent for being a bit ridiculous. From his turn as Parks and Recreation’s luxury-loving entrepreneur Tom Haverford, to his over-the-top standup alter ego Randy, Ansari is never one to shy away from the zaney.

That embrace of crazy costumes and far-fetched gags is precisely what makes the comedian the perfect person to explain Sesame Street’s Word of the Day. With the help of Grover, some stovepipe hats, and a few chicken suits, let Ansari teach your kids the true meaning of the word "ridiculous."

While nothing can top the broadcast duo of John Oliver and Cookie Monster, these two come pretty darn close to tackling all things "very very silly." 

Screenshot via YouTube

The big-screen adaptation of The Book of Life is a visually stunning masterpiece of a film. From the intricately designed Manolo Sanchez and Maria, to the breathtaking settings and background scenery, director Jorge R. Gutierrez knew exactly what he was doing when he helmed the film.

Now, a very early project of Gutierrez's proves why he was the right man for the project.

Carmelo , an eight-minute short film produced in 2000, was created by Gutierrez during his time as a student—yes, a student—at CalArts. Just as beautifully designed as The Book of Life, Carmelo tells the story of a young boy who learns about his master matador father, Carmelo.

Carmelo won Gutierrez accolades through his school when it was awarded the Student Emmy award for Animation. Additionally, it was circulated through several film festivals that same year, including Cannes.

It goes without saying that Gutierrez is poised to become one of this generation's next great animators—perhaps to a level that is on par with such heavyweights as Hayao Miyazaki, Chuck Jones, and Tim Burton.

H/T Digg | Screengrab via Vimeo

Tinder is ripe for novelty accounts, but one of the America’s biggest tricksters hasn’t gotten his hands on it. At least not yet.

Actor and resident party crasher Bill Murray has actually heard of the app, he tells Jimmy Kimmel, so it’s not yet another example of “late-night talk show host introduces celebrity to modern technology.” Murray’s ahead of the game and put some thought into whether or not he would use it for himself.

“I think it could be amusing,” he said.

He doesn’t even need the app before he finds his first match, but using Tinder to spring up on people at random seems more his style anyway.

Screengrab via Jimmy Kimmel Live/YouTube

Dana Carvey’s still got it

We were in awe of his master impersonation skills in his Saturday Night Live days, and even now he can pull one out of his hat as if it were nothing. So when he stopped by to talk to Conan O’Brien last night, he pretty much had an entire bag full of impressions to try out, dropping no less than half a dozen of them on the audience, along with some classics.

Of course, some of the situations are a bit too absurd for them to happen in real life. Could you imagine what Scarface would sound like arguing about sweet potatoes? And it’s doubtful that Rick Grimes is in any way concerned with improving his cardio fitness with that zombie apocalypse to deal with and all.

He topped it all off by singing about the flugelbone, which may be the first time the horn’s been the subject of a song (or even identified correctly), and it left us wanting even more.

Screengrab via Team Coco

This is one of those exceedingly rare moments when it’s appropriate to use the word “epic.” Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey—one of cinema’s purest triumphs and the best science-fiction film of all time in the bargain—just got a new trailer, and it rules. 

Commissioned by Warner Bros. and the British Film Institute ahead of a Nov. 28 theatrical re-release for a “Sci-Fi: Days of Fears and Wonder” program, it seamlessly weaves together the movie’s balletic spacecraft, prehistoric prologue, and eye-popping visuals. The unnerving voice of HAL 9000, everyone’s favorite insane artificial intelligence, cuts through all.

This reminds me: No one else go as a giant space fetus for Halloween, OK? 

Photo by Will Folsom/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Humanity once directed all its queries to Yahoo Answers, that we might marvel at their bottomless stupidity, but lately Quora has emerged to court questions that ring a little smarter, if also quite strangely. Now it looks as if one might become the basis for a TV series.

Varietyreports that Emmy-winning producer Josh C. Kline, an exec at a cloud content collaboration company called Box, stumbled across a Quora discussion that caught his eye. “If every state of the USA declared war against each other, which would win?” it asks. 

A whimsical curiosity, perhaps—like Reddit’s infamous horse/duck scenario—though U.S. Marine Sergeant Jon Davis, a veteran of the Iraq war, spun it into a fascinating fiction. His Studs Terkel-like history of the “Second American Civil War” incorporates geography, statistics, and fabricated diary entries to achieve a surprisingly nuanced account of a multi-year conflict we hope never comes to pass, mostly because Texas is the victor.

“The story just pulled me in and the guy’s voice was so interesting that right away I could see it being a film project,” Kline said. He optioned the material with an eye toward a TV miniseries and is excited to be “hustling” on behalf of Davis, a full-time teacher and indie author from Oklahoma. Rather than write the project, he’ll likely get a consulting credit. “I was just really excited that people enjoyed it,” he told Variety.

All that’s left is to figure out what sparked this hypothetical war in the first place. Racial tensions? Abortion rights? Someone saying “pop” instead of “soda”? We can’t wait to find out.    

H/T Variety | Photo by Eric Fischer/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Spotify is a convenient means of streaming music, but sometimes you long to reach out and… touch something. To caress edges and push buttons. That’s where Matt Brailsford comes in.

The U.K.-based developer used computing system Raspberry Pi to connect Spotify to a tactile, old-school cassette player. The guts of a the player were removed, and the Raspberry Pi transplanted in. The Raspberry Pi runs a version of Music Box with Spotify streaming features loaded; a custom module reads button presses, reads NFC tags inside the cassettes, and identifies playlists. 

Brailsford admits he needs to come up with a good name for the contraption. Right now, he’s just calling it Ferguson, which is its manufactured birth name.

Brailsford currently works as a Web developer, but still finds time to “tinker in my spare time to pull myself back into the real world and work on real things, not just stuff in the virtual world. There is just something about something you can hold in your hands that is way more satisfying than any piece of code you create.”

Indeed, there is something soothing about hearing an older song, or even a new song, hiss through those cassette speakers.

“I was a child of the ‘80s so these were the types of devices I grew up with and loved,” Brailsford said. “Everything back then just felt more solid and built to last, unlike much of today’s tech that is made to just last a year or so at most. Many devices also have a kind of beauty that is difficult to just throw away, so really it was just a case of giving these types of things new life and making them useful again.”

Brailsford says he’s always been interested in the guts of things, and was “always been a bit of a (frustrated) tinkerer. After I'd had my fun with any electric toys, I'd always end up pulling them to pieces to see how they work. Maybe that's why I have the respect I do for the products of my childhood and want to bring them back to life.

“In the end, though, it's just nice to have that tactile feeling back in your fingertips where you physically have to change the cassette to change the playlist, rather than everything being controlled by tiny little screens in your pocket.”

H/T CNET | Screengrab via YouTube

The great migration from YouTube to TV  continues with Todrick Hall, who will be making his way to MTV in 2015.

Hall is best known for his over-the-top music videos, including work he’s done for Virgin America, as well as his recent Twerk du Soleil dance tour. His MTV show will document the life of a YouTube star, from concepting ideas and working with other creators to the editing process and promotion to his 1.1 million subscribers. 

In typical Hall fashion, he announced the new project with a cheeky video that spoofs The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air intro.

MTV has ordered eight episodes of the half-hour-long series, which will premiere in 2015. Hall joins other YouTube-to-TV stars like Epic Meal Time, Bethany Mota, and Grace Helbig as beneficiaries of the mainstream media's increasing attention to the new landscape of digital empires.

H/T VideoInk | Screengrab via Todrick Hall/YouTube

Netflix’s original comedy roster continues to grow as the streaming network has announced a new animated show for 2015, F Is for Family, which puts the spotlight on the gritty stand-up talents of Bill Burr.

F Is for Family isheaded by Burr and Emmy-winner Michael Price (The Simpsons) and focuses on the working-class Murphy family living in the ‘70s in a less kind and gentler time when bopping your kid on the head was considered proper parenting. Burr will assume the role of Frank Murphy, the head of the Murphy clan, with Laura Dern and Justin Long adding their vocal talents as Burr’s wife and son.

Similar to the path of Chelsea Handler, whose comedy special preceded her new Netflix talk show, Burr’s exclusive performance of I’m Sorry You Feel That Way, will premiere Friday, Dec. 5.

Burr’s popularity comes from his ability to use and master multiple media to deliver his work and hone his craft. His stand up specials, such as the 2012 You People Are All the Same, draws large audiences on YouTube and his work in the fourth and fifth seasons of Breaking Bad as ex-cop Patrick Kuby adds to his connection and familiarity to fans of that popular series. Burr also does a weekly podcast that delves into topics that span the gamut from the Ebola virus to the woes of professional football.

Netflix is investing heavily in original animated comedies. The network recently debuted BoJack Horseman and Dreamworks’ Turbo FAST. In queue to join the roster are All Hail King Julien ( from the Madagascar films), Puss in Boots, Dinotrux, and Magic School Bus 360.

Screengrab via Julian Jenson/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

At only 28 years old, Raven-Symoné already has already left behind quite a legacy. From her turn as TheCosby Show’s adorable Olivia to taking center stage on the Disney Channel as psychic high school student Raven Baxter, the actress quite the list of credits to her name. But perhaps the most curious piece of her legacy to date cropped up on Vine late last month.

Popular Vine star Pookieboo posted a six-second snippet of her friend performing a dance inspired by Raven-Symoné, as noted in the caption, that sparked the viral dance craze known as “hitting the Raven.”

From there, users of the app took the instructional dance and its beat and began hitting the Raven in their own unique way. 

Some stopped, dropped, and popped it one time in groups. 

Others hit that Raven in the bathroom of all places. 

Even the Air Force JROTC couldn't resist hitting that Raven a few times. 

While Symoné has yet to hit the Raven herself, she's reposted some of her favorites on her Vine page. Now we're just crossing our fingers and hoping that the cast of Game of Thrones will pick up on the viral dance craze and give a whole new meaning to hitting that raven. 

Photo via alexlc13/Flickr (CC BY SA 2.0)

Perpetual headliner and pop music genius Justin Bieber scored a hockey goal Tuesday night at the Los Angeles Kings Valley Ice Center. He knew it was a sweet shot, and posted the accompanying, self-aggrandizing language: "My dangles were unreal.. did u see that shot? I'm number 20. #dangles #20 #iceicebaby #uthoughtthiswasagame #imadethatpuckmybitch."

The Valley Ice Center confirmed to The Daily Dot that Bieber was in the house Tuesday, and that he was playing in a men’s league game. His team is called the California Leafs, an Ice Center employee said, and the Leafs play at the Center’s Division 6 level—that’s listed as “Beginner/Novice.”

Maybe not that impressive, given the level of competition? Come to think of it, the goal inherently stands out because 85 percent of the United States did not grow up with ready access to ice and hockey equipment. Had he banked in a competent J or thrown a tight spiral into an inflatable and promotional picture of a receiver stretching his arms with a hole in place of his hands, we'd all roll our eyes.

But the American icon is from Canada and reportedly grew up on the ice. Look, nice handle and touch, but playing in the kiddie pool of men’s league hockey isn’t something to hashtag home about.

Photo via Il Fatto Quotidiano/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

Air New Zealand has long embraced its homeland’s status as the Earthly home of all things Middle-earth, with numerous in-flight videos, custom plane designs, and vast fibreglass models in its terminals. Now the airline is taking these tie-ins to new heights with the release of what they call “the most epic safety video ever made.” What makes the video so epic is that it stars Frodo Baggins himself, Elijah Wood.

Gandalf, the Ring, and Orcish marauders all make an appearance, but it’s only the latest in a long line of Hobbit-inspired videos. First, in 2012, there was the “Unexpected Briefing,” which has been viewed almost 12 million times.

Then came the “Just another day in Middle-earth” ad in 2013:

The most recent video will probably be the last in the sequence, because—finally!—The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies is almost upon us, with a North American release date of Dec. 17, 2014. After that, Air New Zealand may, at long last, have to return to reality.

Until the next inevitable franchise spin-off, that is.

Screengrab via Air New Zealand/YouTube

Conan O’Brien’s solution to ending Google Glass addiction will guarantee you’ll never put on a pair of Google's futuristic specs.

After he heard the story about the man who was supposedly addicted to Google Glass after wearing it up to 18 hours a day, he realized that it could be a "serious problem" that affects us all. He knew he had to do something about it, and the results are sure to blow everyone's minds.

It’s safe to say that those Glassholes are no longer addicted, but they’re also not doing much of anything.

Screengrab via Team Coco

Don’t ask Ross Hull if he’s afraid of the dark.

Hull spent 10 years, from 1990 to 2000, as the most recognizable face of Nickelodeon cult hit Are You Afraid of the Dark?. With his circular glasses, dark hair, and tales of impossible situations, he was Harry Potter before the British icon sat on a broom. Now, 14 years since he left the campfire behind, Hull returns for a cheeky look at what it’s like to be a former teen star recognized as “that guy from that show.”

“We get Gary back to the campfire to tell a story,” Hull told the Daily Dot. “It’s not recreating an episode from the ’90s, but it takes some flavors from it, and we're having a bit of fun. It’s tongue-in-cheek. It’s one of those things where we had a lot of fun doing it, but it’s been a lot of work. It’s not our full-time job. I hope people enjoy it; I enjoyed the experience, for sure.”

In the video, Hull encounters all forms of adoring, angry, and and downright desperate fans in the video, from a mother furious over all the nightmares his show produced to a gym mate who thinks he probably saw Hull at a bathhouse and a waitress who clearly had a sexual awakening to Hull in the ’90s (for those wondering, he lets the ladies know that he doesn’t swing their way, but begrudgingly signs their chests like a good sport).

Hull previously produced a 13-minute documentary about his experiences with the nostalgia junkies of Nickelodeon fandom at a 2013 meet and greet panel at the 92nd Street Y in New York. Hull said he was impressed and shocked by how invested the fans were in the show, which he recalls was shot 13 episodes at a time over a span of two to three weeks on set.

“It was funny because for this project I had to look back, and it was like I was watching for the first time,” he said. “You don’t remember a cast member leaving, or plot twists. It’s pretty unbelievable how passionate fans are, and what they remember and what details they remember, and the questions they have. Like, ‘Was Tucker your half brother or whole brother?’ I think the guy had dark hair and dark eyes and is a good actor, the casting director went, ‘let’s cast this guy as Gary’s brother!’

"When you’re part of something, sometimes you don’t view it in the same way as being a fan," Hull continued. "I have to say that now, this many years later, I’m appreciating the show and seeing it through other people’s eyes. All these stories about the viewing experience they had Saturday night on Nickelodeon watching the show—it makes me go, 'Wow, I have to go back and look at this show in a different light as well.'”

After his teenage TV fame on Nickelodeon, Hull continued to act for a while, including a stint on Canadian teen show Student Bodies. Eventually, however, he shifted gears for a different life in front of the camera. Hull is now a meteorologist on Canadian TV, a career he started 10 years ago.

“People were really shocked the first time they saw me do the weather in Canada," he said. "I always had a passion for broadcasting; I’d bug my family doing fake newscasts as a kid. It became this second career for me. [With the YouTube account,] I wanted to get back into doing some creative stuff, and this was sort of the entry into doing it. I think I’m comfortable enough at this point that I have the meteorology career: When I was starting on meteorology, I wanted to put that stuff behind me to be taken seriously as a broadcaster, but I’m comfortable now.”

Hull says he really enjoyed the creative process of creating his most recent homage to Are You Afraid of the Dark? and wants to keep the door open for more creative projects.

“I’m open to suggestions, and if fans see the episode and have any ideas, we’re certainly open to that,” Hull said. “What we love about this is we’re able to create content and direct it towards people who are into it, fans of the show and so on, and that’s what we want to keep doing. We have a few ideas, but we’ll see what happens.”

Meanwhile, fans can hit their nostalgia quota by devouring every single episode of the series on YouTube.

Screengrab courtesy of Ross Hull

Move over, Ashton Kutcher and Noah Wyle. There’s a new Steve Jobs in town.

Emmy- and Oscar-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin has officially announced that Christian Bale will take on the role of Steve Jobs in the new biopic, adapted from Walter Isaacson's 2011 biography. Filming is scheduled to start in a few months.

While Bale is best known to the masses as Bruce Wayne/Batman in Christopher Nolan’s film trilogy, he won the 2011 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in The Fighter. The match between Sorkin’s penchant for fast-paced dialog and Bale’s uncanny ability to dispose of his native accent while performing may result in a powerful performance. Sorkin said in an interview with Bloomberg News that Bale didn’t have to audition to land the starring role.

“He has more words to say in this movie than most people have in three movies combined,” Sorkin told Bloomberg News of the role. “There isn’t a scene or a frame that he’s not in. So it’s an extremely difficult part, and he is gonna crush it.”

Other actors rumored to be in line for the of Steve Jobs part included Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and Bradley Cooper.

H/T Bloomberg News | Photo via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)

BY BREE BROUWER

Fusion wants to bring some laughs to TV audiences and online video masses. The media company has partnered with YouTube animation multi-channel network Mondo Media for a new animated sketch series called Like, Share, Die.

Like, Share, Die’s 20 episodes will span roughly 15 minutes each and will use sketches from Mondo’s network of creators, as well as from the program’s lead writer Josh Faure-Brac (of SuperNews! fame). The show will be executive produced by Mondo’s VP of Animation and Business Development, Aaron Simpson in conjunction with Six Point Harness Studios.

Fusion tapped Mondo for its wide viewership and proven ability to develop online video content that gets picked up by other media companies and formats. In addition to boasting a huge subscriber base (of over 2.4 million on its main YouTube channel), the MCN has seen its popular, cuddly, and violent Happy Tree Friends cartoon adapted into a TV series for G4 and MTV channels. Additionally, Mondo successfully Kickstarted its Dick Figures series (to the tune of several hundreds of thousands of dollars), which was made into a feature film for digital distribution in September 2013.

“Mondo has a unique sensibility and platform for finding, producing and building large, loyal digital audiences,” said Wade Beckett, Fusion’s Chief Programming Officer, in the release. “They’ve demonstrated they can adapt their best performing properties into longer forms for television and feature film, so we are excited to bring their unique brand of comedy to Fusion’s audience.”

Like, Share, Die will debut December 2014 on Fusion’s cable network and its website, with portions uploaded to both Fusion and Mondo’s YouTube channels.

Screengrab via Tubefilter

“Crackle is dead.”

Those dreaded words come directly from the mouth of Dick Corcoran, head of Crackle, who summons one his digital video stars, Jerry Seinfeld, to the company’s worldwide headquarters in L.A. His mission: To take down Crackle’s evil competitors, Snap and Pop. This fictional scene is a mano-a-mano exchange between Seinfeld and his hipster doofus buddy Michael Richards/Kramer, who takes on the role of Corcoran. It’s also part of an elaborate trailer for the fifth season of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, which debuts on Nov. 6.

The clip starts with Seinfeld being whisked off the streets of New York and sent on his way to Hollywood at the speed of Internet light. Richards/Kramer/Corcoran is a cigar-chomping, greasy-mustached studio boss whose dialog is a mix of his iconic TV character and a stereotypical entertainment exec.

Corcoran: You’ve heard of Netflix and Hulu?

Seinfeld: They’re very popular.

Corcoran: Well, we’re not! (In deference to Jake Jarmel, we must include an exclamation point.)

There’s another subtle link between the short teaser and the ‘90s sitcom: Jerry’s love of cereal. “Snap, Crackle, Pop” is the slogan for Rice Krispies.

The real homage, if there is one, is to one of SCTV’s best characters, station manager Guy Caballero. There’s an uncanny similarity between Joe Flaherty’s TV boss from that Canadian series and Michael Richards’ own take on the archetype in this trailer.

The fifth season of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee will feature guests Jimmy Fallon, Kevin Hart, Amy Schumer and Bill Burr.

Screengrab via Crackle