Larry David, Barack Obama and the hilarious note on his HBO show

Larry David Partner with Barack Obama and Michelle Obama to Produce New HBO Series Life, Larry and the pursuit of unhappiness is the epitome of totally unexpected entertainment news. The fact that your new television show has a star-studded cast including David, Bill Hader, Kathryn Hahn, Jon Hamm, Sean Hayes, Jerry Seinfeldand Chris Parnell only makes it even more amazing.

Surprisingly, it seems like the most fascinating part of the upcoming show is something that happened behind the scenes. When the former president tried to give the comedy star a shoutout about a sketch, Larry David’s response was truly epic.

Behind the scenes of television’s most surreal collaboration

On Friday, June 26, 2026, the first episode of Life, Larry and the pursuit of unhappiness will premiere on HBO and HBO Max. Each episode of the upcoming comedy show, which was designed to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, was directed by Jeff Schaffer. while talking to The tribune chronicle In June 2026, he described What was it like working on the show with Obama and David?.

While speaking to the outlet, the most surprising thing Schaffer said was when he described the moment Obama tried to give David a note about a sketch. He described a hilarious interaction in which David said something incredibly funny to the former president that only he would have the nerve to say out loud:

“Larry and President Obama are a lot of fun together. They really like to bad-mouth each other. I remember our first note session, President Obama was giving a note on a sketch or something, and Larry said, ‘Yeah, no, we’ll take care of it. We’ve got it.’ And Obama just says, ‘Okay, I see how this is going to be.’ I just spent half an hour telling you how great it was. I give a note and you cower defensively. The president says, ‘You know, I like to think that When I was in the Oval Office I took notes and advice from the people I worked with,’ and Larry just says, ‘Yeah, but I’m the president of this.'”

Before sharing that funny story, Schaffer also told the outlet about former President Obama’s comedic skills. “He was so funny. His timing was incredible. He was a really good actor, not just for being a former president, but for being an actor. It was actually a dream to direct him, because he got all the jokes and nailed everything in the best way. He’s also one of the coolest guys on the planet. It was an incredible, incredible experience.”

The Tribune chronicle The article detailing his interview with Schaffer also shared some details about the highly anticipated new HBO show. He noted that the series follows a similar format to Curb your enthusiasm. The article also details that the show was originally planned to have six episodes, but there was enough material for seven, and that they strove to be accurate in production details, such as clothing.

‘You can’t call the president an idiot’: Larry David’s breaking point

Like Jeff Schaffer, Larry David has spoken about what it means to work with Barack Obama in Life, Larry and the pursuit of unhappiness It was like behind the scenes during the interviews. On June 19, 2026, the YouTube channel of Jimmy Kimmel live! the presenter of that program went up interviewing David about working on the show. During the argument, the former Curb your enthusiasm The star shared a funny story about how he called Obama an idiot character when they filmed a sketch together. The best part of the story came when he described the former president’s reaction.

“He’s great on the show… He came up with a great line in the scene where I had to shake it. And I asked him if I could take a sip and he said, ‘No.’ And I said, ‘Why not?’ And he said, ‘Old lips.’ I thought that was a great line. It’s in a sketch. And in the sketch he is going to tell me that he doesn’t want to, that if he orders soup or spaghetti he won’t wear a tie. And I started to respond… I said, ‘What kind of idiot?'”

David continued, “And as soon as the word idiot came to mind, I started laughing. Because I knew, even in a sketch, there’s no way I’m calling this guy an idiot. So we had to cut the scene because I was laughing so hard. And he looked at me and said, ‘You can’t call the president an idiot.'” Without missing a beat, Kimmel had a response to the idea that you can’t insult the president’s intelligence. “Really? I don’t know. I do that every night.”

Early in the conversation, David went into detail about how he ended up collaborating with Barack and Michelle Obama on the HBO series. “Obama’s production company called me. Oh, they approached you with this? They approached me. They said, do you want to do something about the country’s 250th anniversary? And you know, I was a history major in college.” When asked if Barack Obama knew about his history background, the comedy star joked: “No, no. He didn’t know, but he knew I was very smart.”

When HBO released a preview of Life, Larry and the pursuit of unhappiness, Barack Obama was shown commenting on working with Larry David. While his comments were clearly his own and intended as a joke, what the former president said is still notable. “I’ve sat across from some of the toughest leaders in the world and wrestled with some of the toughest problems on the planet. Nothing has prepared me for working with Larry David.”

Birth name: Lawrence Gene David
Birthdate: July 2, 1947
place of birth: Sheepshead Bay, New York, New York
Members: Children: Cazzie David, Romy David | Current spouse: Ashley Underwood
Height: 5’11”
Siblings: Ken David

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