Lena Dunham Directs Megan Stalter and Will Sharpe

Lena Dunham wants audiences to lean into being “Too Much” sometimes.

The “Girls” creator is back on TV — this time writing, directing, and executive-producing the series “Too Much” for Netflix. “Hacks” breakout star Megan Stalter plays the Dunham-esque Jessica, who relocates from New York to London to start fresh after a breakup. Despite planning on being alone forever, Jessica soon meets musician Felix (Will Sharpe), who challenges her to reevaluate her 30-something crisis.

Dunham co-created the series with her real-life husband, Luis Felber, who also serves as an executive producer and provides original music. The 10-episode show was announced in 2023. Dunham is the creator, writer, director, and executive producer, and helms eight out of 10 episodes.

The official synopsis of “Too Much” reads: Jessica (Stalter) is “a New York workaholic in her mid-30s, reeling from a broken relationship that she thought would last forever and slowly isolating everyone she knows. When every block in New York tells a story of her own bad behavior, the only solution is to take a job in London, where she plans to live a life of solitude like a Brontë sister. But when she meets Felix (Will Sharpe) — a walking series of red flags — she finds that their unusual connection is impossible to ignore, even as it creates more problems than it solves. Now they have to ask themselves: do Americans and Brits actually speak the same language?”

“Girls” alums Rita Wilson and Andrew Rannells also star, along with Andrew Scott, Emily Ratajkowski, Naomi Watts, Stephen Fry, Michael Zegan, Janicza Bravo, Richard E. Grant, Leo Reich, Daisy Bevan, Adele Exarchopoulos, Dean-Charles Chapman, Prasanna Puwanarajah, Rhea Perlman, Kaori Momoi, and Adwoa Aboah.

Dunham told Vanity Fair that “Too Much” is a departure from her “Girls” TV tone. “I didn’t even appreciate the luxury I was given on ‘Girls’ to do things like bottle episodes, where I stayed with two characters for a night, or let three characters circle around each other. It was just what made sense to me because I’d always written for low budgets,” Dunham said. “I always felt that I had to give people the traditional A, B, and C storylines until episode five. Now I’m much more living under the motto of, ‘If you feel it, go for it.’ We never know how many we’re going to get. You don’t get six seasons of everything.”

Dunham will next direct a feature about the rise and fall of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. Dunham will adapt the screenplay from Michael Lewis’ New York Times-bestselling book, “Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon.” The Apple Original film comes in partnership with A24.

“Too Much” premieres on Netflix July 10. Check out the trailer below.