Michael Patrick King Teases The Comeback Season 3 (Exclusive)

Michael Patrick King is gearing up for The Comeback to make its comeback.

The writer and director, 71, spoke with PEOPLE at GLAAD’s 40th Anniversary Gala in New York City on Friday, Oct. 10, where he was honored with the Vito Russo Award. Amid news that a third season of The Comeback is in the works — the first premiered in 2005, the second in 2014 — King teases what fans can expect to see from the sitcom’s return.

“You’re looking forward to seeing Valerie Cherish again,” he says, referring to Lisa Kudrow’s lead character. “As far as I’m concerned, wherever Valerie Cherish is, what is the world around her, it’s always going to be funny and hopefully surprises you. But she’s still Valerie, so you’ll get what you want I think.”

“I’m thrilled to be working with Lisa, and thrilled to be on this show that we creatively love,” he adds.

With a decade between each installment of the comedy series, The Comeback has had an unusual presence in the television world. Although Kudrow, 62, and King were both nominated for Emmys for their work on the show following its first season, some saw it as awkward or hard to watch while others couldn’t get enough of the show’s “cringe” nature.

“Let me tell you something,” King quips. “Quality ages well. So if you make a good product, maybe there’s time for it to come back. Vintage, classic vintage is always fashionable.”

The Comeback first premiered on HBO in June 2005 and ran for 13 episodes. It was Kudrow’s first starring TV stint post-Friends, and she starred as protagonist Valerie, a “B-list actress” desperate to re-enter Hollywood after leaving the industry years prior.

It was first canceled in September 2005 after just one season but amassed a cult following that sparked its revival season in December 2014. In June, the network announced that the four-time Emmy-nominated series would be back for season 3, which is set to air in 2026.

“Valerie Cherish has found her way back to the current television landscape,” King and Kudrow said in a statement on announcing the news. “Neither of us are surprised she did.”

Returning series regulars will include Kudrow, Dan Bucatinsky, Laura Silverman and Damian Young.

Over the summer, King and Kudrow celebrated the series’ 20th anniversary, with King telling Variety that he remembered getting word from HBO executives Mike Lombardo and Casey Bloys about having made “a mistake” by canceling the show at the beginning of its run.

“[They] said, ‘We made a mistake. Would you do another season?’ Ten years later,” King recalled.

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Among its massive fan base, which has grown over the past 20 years, King revealed that one of The Comeback’s most notable fans was David Bowie.

“As it was being reacted to weirdly, David Bowie called and asked for the episodes, because he had to go on the road and he didn’t want to miss the rest of Valerie,” King told Variety.

He continued: “Could he have the advance copies of the episodes that hadn’t aired? We went around saying, ‘Well, David Bowie likes it.’ ”