Judd Apatow was inspired to turn to TV by Lena Dunham.
Lena Dunham and Judd Apatow
The 49-year-old producer, director and writer - who has directed Hollywood movies including 'The 40-Year-Old Virgin', 'Knocked Up' and 'Trainwreck' - turned to television after meeting the 'Girls' creator.
He said: "I didn't really plan to do TV. And then I met Lena [Dunham, and] I just thought, Oh, this is such a special talent. I would do anything with her.
"The entire landscape of television changed and people would give you a season order and give you commitments. Now, what I like to do, which wasn't really built for network, is suddenly more in demand."
Judd served as producer on the HBO show but insists he is rarely needed as they do "such a beautiful job".
He told Entertainment Tonight: "[I'm a] cog in the machine ... I can be very helpful at key moments, but, you know, the weight isn't on me.
"They do such a beautiful job that I couldn't have been less needed. I thought, I can only hurt this."
Meanwhile, Lena previously admitted she was "fantasising" about a 'Girls' movie.
She said: "I have fantasies of us all coming back and making a movie when we're 40. I think we'd want to wait long enough for something to have really gone down.
"I know we have our darker season and lighter seasons. We definitely has some darkness. I just wrote an episode in a fever dream. I had a moment where I was like, 'Did I accidentally write a remake of 'Traffic'? What just happened?'
"We spent a lot of time talking about where these girls will end up. We definitely have a distinct idea of where we want to see them. I even sometimes focus on this final image that I see, but between now and then, anything can happen."
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