Chad Powers showrunner Michael Waldron has spoken to The Hollywood Reporter about the creative approach behind the Hulu comedy, revealing that its most amusing moments – star Glen Powell's disguised character improvising increasingly absurd explanations to avoid blowing his cover – often come from simply writing "your first, stupidest thought" rather than crafting elaborate jokes. Waldron and Powell also confirmed that they always intended the show to run for just three seasons, with an 18-episode arc designed to avoid the trap of storylines being needlessly dragged out.

Waldron explained that the character's comedy relies less on wit than on commitment, with Powell's delivery and other characters' reactions carrying deadpan, self-indulgent lines that sometimes get cut for being too silly, such as a discarded season two bit about manually controlling bodily functions. The pair likened season two's Russ/Chad dynamic to Batman's dual identity, while the upcoming third season, set around the College Football Playoffs, will lean more towards a Peter Parker/Spider-Man style tension as Russ considers whether he can ever be comfortable as himself again. Powell, who is also a University of Texas student, said he had long thought through how the central deception could not realistically survive a full college football season, shaping the show's planned conclusion.