A new comedy series on FX will take place right here in Wildwood, New Jersey.
“Wildwood” is Irish screenwriter and playwright Lisa McGee’s spiritual successor to her cult-classic comedy “Derry Girls,” which explored a group of Irish teenagers in the 90s during the final years of The Troubles, a period of political turmoil in Northern Ireland between Protestant unionists, supported by British security forces, and Catholic nationalists.
It’s McGee’s first work that will take place outside of the UK and Ireland. However, an Irish connection remains at the forefront of “Wildwood.” The comedy will follow a group of Irish college students who travel to the Jersey Shore during the summer of 2000.
According to Deadline, which first reported the news, the group arrives in Wildwood with no money, no visas, no plan, and no clue. 20th Television and FX landed the project in what was described as a “very competitive” pursuit for McGee’s next show.
Familiar Writing, New Setting
“Derry Girls” premiered in 2018 on the UK’s Channel 4, becoming the network’s biggest comedy launch in over a decade. The show—loosely based on McGee’s youth in Northern Ireland—ran for three seasons and found a devoted audience in the United States once it came to Netflix. It earned Best Comedy honors at the BAFTAs, International Emmys, and Irish Film and Television Awards.
McGee has stayed busy since. Recently, she created “How to Get to Heaven from Belfast,” a comedy thriller that launched on Netflix earlier this year.
Why Wildwood?
Few details have emerged about why McGee landed on Wildwood specifically.
The Shore town is best known for its boardwalk, which remains packed with families and college-age partygoers alike during the summer. Presumably, the crew of “Wildwood” seeks a party-filled summer, complete with boardwalk pizza, rides, sunbathing, and plenty of late nights at the bar.
Wildwood does have an existing Irish connection: North Wildwood has hosted an annual Irish Fall Festival for more than four decades, according to PhillyVoice. So, it will be interesting to see if McGee chooses to explore this detail.
But the basis of the series is set. Fans of “Derry Girls” will get a new series that takes place at the Jersey Shore. Whether “Wildwood” garners the same cult following as its predecessor remains to be seen.
Peter Candia is the Food + Drink Editor at New Jersey Digest. A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Peter found a passion for writing midway through school and never looked back. He is a former line cook, server and bartender at top-rated restaurants in the tri-state area. In addition to food, Peter enjoys politics, music, sports and anything New Jersey.
