"Pee-wee as Himself" Trailer: Paul Reubens Reflects on Fame, Scandal, and the Creation of Pee-wee Herman in This Emotional Two-Part HBO Documentary

In this two-part HBO documentary, Paul Reubens reflects on his iconic career as Pee-wee Herman, from its humble beginnings to the trials of fame.

Anyone raised on the comedy stylings of Pee-wee Herman, it’s best to break out those hankies now because this is going to get real emotional, fast.

Paul Reubens, the comic genius behind the famed 1980s man-child personality Pee-wee Herman, passed away in July of 2023 at the age of 70, from complications of both myelogenous leukemia and metastatic lung cancer. It was a diagnosis he had known about six years prior to his death, and one he chose not to disclose to the public, even to some of his famous friends. Leading up to his unfortunate passing, Reubens was working on a documentary about his life, where he finally got to reveal who he was beyond the character of Pee-wee Herman.

Now, sadly, this two-part documentary feels like it was possibly a final farewell to his fans and supporters. The message comes straight from Reubens himself, who must have felt his time was limited but felt compelled to finally lift that veil before he left us for his next stage.

“It’s weird to be in this situation, having a documentary made because I’m used to having control of my alter ego,” Reubens asserts in the first official trailer for Pee-wee as Myself.

Featuring revealing conversations with Reubens, speaking directly to the camera, along with interviews with many of his associates, colleagues, and former co-workers—including his sister Abby Rubenfeld, artists Gary Panter and Wayne White, and actors/comedians Laurence Fishburne, the late Lynne Marie Stewart, S. Epatha Merkerson, Natasha Lyonne, David Arquette, and Debi Mazar, among others—the two-part documentary offers a candid look at Paul Reubens’s comedy career. It dives into the creation of his beloved sketch character Pee-wee Herman, while also chronicling his trajectory from a kooky L.A. improv comic performer at the Groundlings to becoming a world-famous children’s show host and star. The documentary will also cover Reubens’s infamous 1991 arrest at an adult porno theater, which generated a public scandal and nearly derailed his career.

Part one of the documentary will detail Reubens’s origins at the Groundlings, where he first created the Pee-wee Herman persona as a dark, oddball take on beloved children’s show characters like Howdy Doody and Captain Kangaroo. The first episode will show how Pee-wee evolved from a stage bit into an award-winning kids’ show with Pee-wee’s Playhouse, employing some of the most unusual young artists to create a show that we haven’t seen done before or might never see again. The episode will also cover Pee-wee’s journey in breaking into the film business with a now-iconic 1985 comedy directed by then-unknown Tim Burton.

Part two of the documentary will reveal Reubens’s thoughts on fame and how his meteoric rise of becoming a pop culture icon ultimately led to a miserable downfall, despite numerous awards and accolades. But after a period of harmful rumors and scandals, Reubens was able to reemerge once again as a pop culture figure, leading to a Pee-wee Herman revival both on the stage and screen. Certainly, he was at an upswing in his career just before he passed.

“Death is so ... final,” Reubens declares in the trailer. “To be able to get your message in at the last minute is incredible.”

Directed and executive produced by documentarian Matt Wolf (Spaceship Earth, Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project) with filmmakers Benny Safdie and Josh Safdie also serving as executive producers, Pee-wee as Himself will be debuting on Friday, May 23rd, with both parts airing back-to-back on HBO and shortly after will be available to stream on MAX.

Official Synopsis:

Driven by a soul-baring interview with Paul Reubens, the man behind the iconic character Pee-wee Herman, PEE-WEE AS HIMSELF is the definitive portrait of the comedic performer, and a window into his never before discussed personal life. Determined to correct the record and tell the factual story of his life, Reubens excavates his kaleidoscopic influences, origins in the circus and avant-garde performance theater, and career choices, while reflecting on the reasoning behind, and the consequences of, severing his beloved alter ego from his authentic self.