Pee-wee as Himself | Official Trailer - Paul Reubens

For the first time, meet the man behind the character. Check out the Pee-wee as Himself trailer for the upcoming two-part documentary starring Paul Reubens. Pee-wee as Himself, directed by Matt Wolf, will debut on Friday, May 23 (8:00pm – 11:20pm ET/PT) with both parts airing back-to-back on HBO and will be available to stream on Max.

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.

Woven together from over 40 hours of interview footage filmed before Reubens’ premature death in 2023, 1,000 hours of archival footage, and tens of thousands of never-before-seen photographs from his personal collections, the film chronicles Reubens’ influences, from growing up in the circus town of Sarasota, Florida to his avant-garde theater training at the California Institute of the Arts. Combining his love of performance art and comedy, Reubens joined the legendary Groundlings improv group, where he created Pee-wee Herman, the impish character that would come to define his career. Becoming a cultural touchstone of the 1980s with his hit film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure,” and his sweetly subversive Emmy-winning children’s television series “Pee-wee’s Playhouse,” Reubens chose to never be photographed or interviewed publicly as himself — an artistic choice to present Pee-wee Herman as a real person not to be confused with his creator. From the “Dating Game” to regular appearances on “The David Letterman Show,” Reubens never broke character, living his dream of doing performance art in mainstream pop culture. When Reubens was arrested at an adult movie theater in 1991, his anonymity was destroyed and he fell prey to the media’s growing appetite for salacious and spurious takedowns.

Occasionally sparring with the documentary’s director over creative control, Reubens speaks candidly, and sometimes warily, about his personal and professional challenges before and after his arrests. Alongside interviews with artists and actors from “Pee-wee’s Playhouse” and prominent figures in his life, Reubens openly discusses further legal battles, his exoneration, his ultimate resurrection as a public figure, and the apotheosis of Pee-wee as an adored and enduring cultural icon. The result is a revealing, hilarious, and complex portrait of Reubens, and a celebration of the enormous and indelible legacy he leaves behind.