Comedian Richard Lewis, who has recurred on Curb Your Enthusiasm since its pilot episode, shared on Monday that he won’t be part of the HBO comedy’s upcoming 11th season.
“What a ride, LD! I love you, buddy,” Lewis tweeted alongside a photo of himself and Curb star Larry David. “Tragically, these past 18 months I’ve endured a back and two shoulder surgeries and not able to be in #curbyourenthusiasm for season 11. I’ll be watching…”
In a separate statement to our sister site Variety, Lewis called Curb “the greatest comedy gig I could have ever imagined,” adding that he “hope[s] to be there for Season 12!”
Lewis has thus far appeared in 39 episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm — including seven installments of the most recent 10th season — playing a semi-autobiographical version of himself who’s a longtime friend of David’s character. (In real life, the comedians have been pals since they were teenagers.)
Curb Your Enthusiasm scored a Season 11 renewal in June 2020, though there’s currently no premiere timetable for the new episodes; the show is known to go on extended hiatuses between seasons, namely the six-year break between Seasons 8 and 9 in 2011 and 2017.
Season 10, meanwhile, earned a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2020, and TVLine named Curb as last year’s most improved comedy.