Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone Podcast ‘Hildy the Barback and the Lake of Fire’ Premieres Season 2 and Expands with New Interview Show (EXCLUSIVE)

On December 15, 2024By Littum

Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone’s podcast series “Hildy the Barback and the Lake of Fire” returns for a second season.

The announcement was made Thursday by the couple and podcast network Lemonada Media. Season 2 will premiere in the summer of 2025.

More from Variety

McCarthy stars as the titular Hildy, while Falcone is Urgrall the Horned One. Season 1 also included Octavia Spencer as the narrator, Glenn Close as the announcer, Allison Janney as Gorwan the Dragon, Joel McHale as Dra-ell The Usurper, and Jim Rash as Drith. The season finale falls on Friday, December 13.

McCarthy and Falcone also announced the launch of “Hildy’s Happy Hour,” a companion podcast hosted by writers Falcone and Steve Mallory and featuring conversations with “Hildy” guest stars.

“It’s been so much fun making this show with our funny and talented friends, so we’re excited to be back for Season 2,” McCarthy and Falcone said in a joint statement. “And yes, we will continue to wear elaborate costumes for a podcast.”

“Hildy the Barback and the Lake of Fire” debuted on October 25 and launched to no. 1 on the fiction charts on Apple Podcasts — where it remained for most of the season — and No. 3 on the Apple Podcasts series charts. Downloads for the first episode were in the top 1% of all podcast episodes published globally, according to Lemonada.

A passion project for McCarthy and Falcone, the two promoted the series on the national talk show circuit, usually wearing kitschy costumes and outlandish props. In fact, “Hildy” downloads increased by 253% the day they appeared on “The Kelly Clarkson Show.”

Listen to “Hildy the Barback and the Lake of Fire” here.

Best of Variety