HBO Drops 'Youth' Trailer: Sharon Horgan Leads a Comedy About Dating, Ageing Parents and Everything in Between
HBO has released the first trailer for Youth, a new comedy series from Sharon Horgan, and it lands a 50-year-old divorcee squarely at the intersection of re-entering the dating world, caring for ailing parents and raising her son (Deadline).
Horgan wrote, executive produced and stars in the series as Alex. The trailer gives a first look at the tone: a comedy that does not flinch from the logistics of ageing. Harriet Walter appears as a character who matter-of-factly tells Alex she has arthritis in her lower jaw and a decreased range of opening — the kind of line that lands because it is delivered straight (Deadline).
The cast extends well beyond Horgan and Walter. Rupert Friend stars as Patrick, Sharlene Whyte as Sam, Aran Murphy as Ruari and Robbie Gee as Frank. Anne Reid and Freddie Fox have also joined the ensemble, according to Yahoo Entertainment, though the date of that report is not specified (Yahoo Entertainment).
Behind the camera, Youth comes from Merman, the production company behind Amandaland, Bad Sisters and Vladimir. Faye Dorn executive produces for Merman, alongside Jim Kleverweis and Dawn Shadforth, who also directs (Deadline).
The series premieres with its first two episodes on Sunday, 20 September at 10 p.m. on HBO, and streams on HBO Max — the platform's subscription service, which replaced the earlier HBO Max app in 2025 (Deadline).
For viewers who know Horgan from Bad Sisters or Catastrophe, Youth sits in familiar territory: sharp, character-driven comedy built around women navigating messy mid-life realities. The difference here is the scale of the juggle — romance, eldercare and parenting stacked into one protagonist's week.
The trailer is short on plot detail and long on texture. Walter's deadpan medical update, the glimpses of Alex toggling between her son, her parents and her own love life, and the steadiness of the ensemble suggest a series more interested in the texture of daily life than in high-concept premises.
No episode count beyond the two-part premiere has been confirmed. No viewing figures exist yet, naturally, for a show that has not aired. What HBO has put in front of audiences is a trailer and a date — enough to mark the slot.
