Vanity Fair and Peacock Go All In on ‘Poker Face’ Game Night

Start counting your chips. On Tuesday, Vanity Fair and Peacock cohosted the game night to end all game nights ahead of the season two premiere of Rian Johnson’s Emmy-nominated series Poker Face, which begins streaming on May 8.

Le Chalet at L’Avenue, a venue renowned for often hosting SNL after-parties, was transformed into an intimate poker den for the event, hosted by Poker Face executive producer, director, writer, and star Natasha Lyonne and Vanity Fair’s editor in chief, Radhika Jones. Multiple poker games unspooled simultaneously, with dealers plucked from Leonardo DiCaprio’s private poker nights at Casa Cipriani. As DJ Rare Gems spun on the decks, Poker Face guest stars like Katie Holmes, Chloë Sevigny, and Steve Buscemi mixed and mingled with celebs like Janelle Monáe, Michelle Buteau, and Alex Edelman. The crowd dined on delicate bites, sipped themed cocktails, and called each others’ bluffs—at the poker table, of course.

Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo made it to the function despite having attended the Met Gala the night before. Although she performed at the legendary shindig last year with her Wicked costar Ariana Grande, this year, Erivo was delighted to simply be a guest. “I love it when I get to just be a spectator and enjoy and dance,” she said. Erivo was certainly put to work in the season two premiere of Poker Face. She plays five characters simultaneously in the episode—a challenge even for someone talented enough to make singing “Defying Gravity” look like a walk in the park.

“I’m excited for it to come out,” Erivo said of the Poker Face premiere. “I’m excited to sit and watch it, and a little bit nervous.” While she’s adept at playing multiple characters at once, it had been a minute since she’d played a game of poker. “I haven’t played poker in a long time,” she said. “I used to play poker. I used to be quite good it, but I don’t know if I’m good at it now.”

The Practice’s Camryn Manheim, however, was a bit more confident in her poker-playing abilities. “I’m good enough,” she said. “Not only am I patient, but I’m very interested in all the stories people are telling me by their bets. I watch very carefully what the story is of their hand.” Later on in the evening, this writer would lose multiple hands in a row to Manheim at a table that also included Lake Bell and Showgirls star Gina Gershon. While Manheim was the most consistent winner, the most daring poker player of the night was Bell, who went all-in multiple times—and won each time she did.