Lena Dunham is making her return to television after an eight-year break since Girls ended in 2017. In a recent interview, she opened up about stepping back from acting and public life, explaining that she needed space to recover and reflect. She struggled with figuring out what parts of her life should be public and what should remain private, realizing that sharing more of herself didn’t change how people saw her.
The backlash around Girls, including criticism over diversity issues and her defense of a writer accused of sexual assault, was a difficult time for her. She described it as a period marked by PTSD from intense media scrutiny. During her hiatus, she went to rehab for an addiction to prescription anxiety medication and experienced what she called a painful metamorphosis as she faced changes she had put off.
Now, Dunham is ready to return with her new Netflix romantic dramedy Too Much, premiering July 10. She co-created the show with her husband Luis Felber and will play Jessica’s older sister, a woman who has also stepped away from public life after a messy divorce. Initially hesitant to act again because of past body shaming experiences, Dunham eventually decided to appear in the series.
Too Much follows Jessica, a New Yorker who moves to London after a breakup and falls for a musician. This new project marks a fresh chapter in Dunham’s career, embracing both creation and performance after a period of self-care and growth.
