Almost five years since Broad City completed its run, the show’s stars Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer have reunited. The occasion? Helping fight the battle against “The Gut Gap,” a discrepancy between the digestive health of women and men that’s the center of a new ad campaign by laxative medication, MiraLAX.
That’s right, Jacobson and Glazer’s idiosyncratic wit has been enlisted to help promote MiraLAX via a new long-form ad, co-written by the comedians themselves. Depicting the two as they meet for their “quarterly Jewish food feast,” the video shows Jacobson reveal that she’s been struggling with constipation, to which Glazer offers the alleged remedy: MiraLAX.
“Women know: we have much more stress,” Glazer says in the ad. “Stress can cause constipation… Women are more likely to be stressed than men, and twice as likely to be constipated.”
Backing up Glazer’s dialogue, the website set up for the ad campaign contains even more stats regarding the “Gut Gap” — like how one in three women are constipated on a weekly basis, and 84% of women are stressed on a weekly basis — all citing a recent, brand-commissioned survey.
Speaking about her reunion with Jacobson, Glazer said: “Poop is an important tenet of one’s comedic voice, and Abbi and I have written, acted in, directed, and produced (no pun intended) many storylines and scenes on the topic. When MiraLAX approached us to connect our special gift to the conversation around women’s stress, we knew we could get the job done.”
For her part, Jacobson said: “While stress and constipation can be a heavy issue, we hope by bringing some laughter and levity, we’ll also help to lighten the mental loads women carry. Reuniting with Ilana to write and film the campaign ads has certainly brought lots of laughter to us, and we hope they resonate with women everywhere and ultimately help spark a movement, pun intended.”
Broad City first premiered in 2014, and wrapped in 2019 after five seasons, earning recognition from Consequence as the 24th-best TV show of the 2010s. Two years ago, Glazer hinted that a formal “reunion” would be possible, but explained that “enough time has to go by” first. Perhaps this new ad indicates that “enough time” has passed? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, you can definitely get a three-minute fix of the duo’s irresistible rapport by watching their new ad for MiraLAX below.