After 24 years on the air, HBO’s classic sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm has come to an end. The Curb Your Enthusiasm finale was monumental to say the least. Season 12 of the iconic show saw the fictionalized Larry David land himself in his biggest predicament yet – facing time in jail.
As each episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 12 rolled out, Larry got closer and closer to spending time behind bars, building a level of suspense that the show had never seen before, but of course, it was delivered in a completely comedic way. So, as the show reached its ultimate conclusion on April 7, 2024, and Larry met his fate, let’s break down the Curb Your Enthusiasm finale.
Larry David Wrangled Together a Star-Studded Finale
Curb Your Enthusiasm has always boasted an impressive host of stars with each season. The show has its regular characters who return for each season and a variety of guest stars. Over the years, Larry David has managed to bring in some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including the likes of Ben Stiller, Seth Rogen, Sean Penn, Elizabeth Banks, and many others. In the finale, all key characters are present – Leon, Jeff, Susie, Cheryl and Ted, and some new faces are added.
Breaking Bad‘s Dean Norris appears as Judge Whittaker, who instantly takes a dislike to Larry. Greg Kinnear stars as Earl Mack, the lawyer hellbent on sending Larry to jail. The late Richard Lewis also graced the screen in what will be his final moment on screen after his passing in February 2024. Furthermore, a plethora of characters resurfaced in the courtroom scenes, including Larry’s long-time rival, Mocha Joe (Saverio Guerra).
How Larry’s Trial Served as a Nostalgic Tribute to the Show’s Legacy
The whole premise of Curb Your Enthusiasm sees an exaggerated version of Larry David constantly landing himself in arguments and mishaps with pretty much anyone he comes across. His unfiltered view on life and society has made him an unlikeable man. As Earl Mack seeks to convict Larry, he attacks his character by bringing a slew of people into the courtroom who have had unsavoury meetings with Larry. For a show that has ran for 12 seasons over 24 years, this scene served as a hilarious dose of nostalgia, with even the character of Larry unearthing long-forgotten memories.
As the picture is built that Larry is not a good person, the audience are left to feel overwhelmed with the amount of mayhem he has spread. However, his actions have never been evil or malicious – he’s simply voicing his mind in a world where other people are too afraid to do so. This trait led Jeff to name him a “social assassin” in Season 8 of the show. However bizarre these situations may have been, this flashback segment shows that, most of the time, Larry really was a “victim of circumstance”.
The Curb Your Enthusiasm Finale Was a Mic Drop Moment for ‘Seinfeld’ As Well
Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld co-created the iconic series, Seinfeld. After seven seasons as the head writer and executive producer, David left the show after the seventh season. However, he returned for the finale. While the finale raked in 76 million viewers, many fans of the show were unhappy with its ending, which saw the group of friends sent to prison. So, when the plot for Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 12 was focused around Larry potentially heading to jail, it felt like a direct nod to the Seinfeld finale.
Throughout Season 12, David left a trail of breadcrumbs that the finale was somehow going to tie in with Seinfeld. Firstly, Larry and Ted’s bickering dynamic increased when Ted made a point that Larry wrote the Seinfeld finale. Then, in the finale, Leon (J.B. Smoove) states how he has never watched an episode of Seinfeld and is going to binge the whole show. As Leon reaches the finale episode of Seinfeld, he tells Larry “I heard some terrible things about it. I heard you f***** it up.”
After his name is successfully tarnished by Mack’s character attack, and the Jury see Larry squash a fly to death, he is found guilty and Judge Whittaker sentences him to a year in prison. As Larry sits in his cell, he quickly bonds with another prisoner over the annoying “pants tent” one gets from wearing corduroy pants (a nod to the very first season of Curb Your Enthusiasm). However, he isn’t sat behind bars for long as Jerry comes to the rescue, informing Larry that he realized a Jury member broke his sequester by dining in a restaurant (where Jerry happened to be too). As Larry and Jerry walk down the bleak grey halls to Larry’s freedom, Larry quips: “This is how we should’ve ended the finale.” Jerry agrees, saying: “Oh my God, you’re right!”
One Key Moment of the Curb Your Enthusiasm Finale Leaves Viewers Wondering About Larry’s Fate
Throughout the history of Curb Your Enthusiasm, Richard Lewis is extremely unlucky in love, and most of the time, he blames Larry. Given his nature, Larry tends to argue with Richard’s love-interests, often unintentionally sending them away with their bags packed. In the Curb Your Enthusiasm finale, Richard heads over to Atlanta early to reignite a flame with a former girlfriend Cynthia (Allison Janney). However, Larry crosses paths with her on the freeway before he has the chance to be formally introduced, and their meeting is not pleasant. When Cynthia speeds up her car to not let Larry into the lane, the two end up flipping each other off.
When Cynthia arrives at the hotel, Larry immediately recognizes her, but she denies the road rage incident ever happened. To make matters worse, Larry then questions her on the notion that she tried to commit suicide after Richard initially broke up with her. Cynthia tells Larry she did so with pills. However, Larry later finds out that she told Lewis she attempted to hang herself. This deceit causes Richard to lose yet another potential wife as he breaks up with her. Richard then tells Larry that she bought a gun and states that she is going to kill Larry.
As Larry leaves the four walls of his cell, we can’t help but feel like a bullet is waiting for him on the other end. However, he successfully gets on the plane home, ending the show with yet another argument with Susie when she opens her window shutter and disrupts Larry’s reading. Yet, that’s not to say that Cynthia won’t come looking for him. Want to read more about Curb Your Enthusiasm? Here’s our breakdown of the show’s best ever guest spots.
Watch the Curb Your Enthusiasm Finale and Entire Back-Catalogue on Max
Follow Us
