Bridesmaids is one of the best movies of the 2010s, thanks to its fantastic women-led cast and it's absolutly hilarious story. It also features so many outlandish scenarios that make it unforgettable, like the infamous gross-out bridal shopping scene, an aggressive game of tennis, and a Parisian bridal shower gone wrong. However, there was one unhinged Bridesmaids scene featuring Kristen Wiig that didn’t make it into the final cut, and I can’t stop thinking about it.

So, in the Paul Feig flick, Lillian and her bridesmaids plan a bachelorette party in Las Vegas, but they never make it there due to a drugged-out Annie causing a scene on the flight. However, in the original script, the gang did make it to Las Vegas. Explaining the call they got from Judd Apatow about cutting the sequence, co-screenwriter Annie Mumolo said on Radio Andy:

I can understand the uncontrollable sobbing if 60 pages of a script went down the drain. At the same time, I can understand why Judd Apatow wanted to take it out. As Mumolo explained, around the time of Bridesmaids’ release, there were many great movies about Las Vegas coming out, like The Hangover, What Happens in Vegas, and 21. So, it’s possible Apatow didn’t want to follow the comedy trend.

Plus, ultimately, this rewrite was amazing because it led to the iconic airplane scene, which features some of the film’s best one-liners and is totally unique to this comedy.

However, for curious minds, here’s what the original Vegas scene entailed; it’s wild:

Well, that sounds like quite the trip! It also would have fit right in with the outlandish and slapstick moments in Bridesmaids. So, even though I already think the movie is perfect, there's another part of me that wants to see Annie's sidequest in Vegas.

Now, if you thought the possibility of Annie getting beaten up by community college girls was crazy, her story in Sin City isn't over:

Talk about a Vegas trip gone wrong. This truly sounds wild, and part of me would love to see this trip made into a short film.

However, I have to admit, I feel like the airplane scene is ultimately better. Annie went through the wringer throughout Bridesmaids as she had to compete with Helen for Lillian’s friendship, dealt with romance troubles, and was down on herself after her bakery didn't work out. Having Annie endure a black eye while all of her friends were living a luxurious life at a spa would have been more tragic for me than funny.

So, in the end, what was supposed to happen in Vegas never did. However, because of that, we got a hilarious airplane scene that made us all “ready to partay with the best of them!”

You can revisit one of the best rom-coms of all time by streaming Bridesmaids with a Starz subscription.

The 40-Year-Old Virgin is well known for launching Steve Carell’s Hollywood career, as well as being Judd Apatow’s feature directorial debut. The movie also helped change the course of Paul Rudd’s life, as it was part of a run of movies that turned into staples of the 2000s and 2010s raunchy comedy genre. Turns out, the Trainwreck director had one major request regarding Rudd's weight before they filmed the 2000s classic, and it didn't go over well.

Romantic comedy fans will know that The 40-Year-Old Virgin wasn’t Paul Rudd’s first movie feature. The Death Of A Unicorn actor became a household name after playing Cher’s older step-brother and eventual love interest in the hit 2000s teen comedy Clueless. Audiences fell in love with Rudd’s yearning eyes and general good looks, but that wasn’t going to work for his character in 40-Year-Old Virgin. Apatow told The Hollywood Reporter he had Rudd put on some weight to play David, but that didn’t go over well with the studio execs:

I’m sure the studio was shocked to get the daily shots, wondering where Josh from Clueless had gone. Part of Paul Rudd’s appeal following the Alicia Silverstone cult classic was his newly minted heartthrob status.

Of course, the “all-American clean-cut” look, which the I Love You, Man actor said his agent pushed hard for after he graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, did not fit the script for 40-Year-Old Virgin.

Rudd’s character, David, is in the throes of a years-long heartbreak, all the while giving Andy (Carell) terrible dating advice and his extensive porn collection. His appearance had to reflect a certain neglect of self-care and immaturity that comes with a break up, and I think putting on a bit of weight and growing his hair out a bit was the right call:

Honestly, it doesn’t even look like he gained that much weight. Some actors have had to drastically change their size and figure for a role, like Dwayne Johnson for The Smashing Machine or Mark Wahlberg for Father Stu. The This Is 40 actor just looks like a pretty typical 30-something dude, which was the goal.

After nearly a decade of Apatow films (the Knocked Up director says he prefers “Chunky Paul”), getting into Marvel shape for Ant-Man seemingly aged him backwards. I’ll admit, he looks good with those abs, but there’s honestly no world where Paul Rudd isn’t a cutie.

That being said, I can totally understand why he might be tired of being typecast as the boyishly handsome guy in comedies. However, his latest film, Power Ballad, in which he stars opposite Nick Jonas and plays a wedding band singer-songwriter whose life didn’t turn out how he imagined, is a step in the right direction. You can catch the 2026 movie schedule entry in theaters now. And if you're looking to go back and see Rudd in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, you can buy or rent the film.

Despite failing in Hollywood over and over again in his younger days, Glen Powell has become one of the most popular and prolific actors in show business over the past few years, and it doesn’t look like he’s slowing down anytime soon. In fact, he’s working on a new comedy with Judd Apatow called The Comeback King, and I couldn’t be more excited to see what this is all about. However, it’s not just the idea of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’s scene-stealing star playing a country singer that has me pumped for this one.

Based on everything I’ve been able to track down on this movie, which didn’t have a title until this April, it sounds like it could be yet another great Apatow film and one that could be made a whole lot better with Powell’s involvement. That said, that’s not the only reason I’m excited for this one…

What We Know About The Comeback King So Far

Before I get into all the reasons I’m excited for The Comeback King, I thought it’d be best to break down everything we know about the upcoming comedy so far. Here are all the nitty-gritty details, including the release date, cast, and information about the production.

• The Comeback King will be released in theaters on February 5, 2027.
• The movie will follow a country western star in free fall
• Glen Powell, Cristin Milioti, Madelyn Cline, Stavros Halkias, and Li Jin Hao star
• Judd Apatow is directing based on a script he co-wrote with Glen Powell
• Production started in April 2026, per ABC.

With that out of the way…

Okay, I’m Sold On The Idea Of Glen Powell Playing A Country Singer

There have been a lot of great Glen Powell movies in recent years, with the versatile actor playing everything from a college baseball player in Everybody Wants Some!! to a cocky pilot in Top Gun: Maverick, to a man-of-a-thousand-faces in Hit Man, to a cowboy stormchaser in Twisters. However, we’ve never seen him play a country singer. Well, that will change when The Comeback King opens in theaters next February.

If I’m being honest, a country western singer seems like the perfect role for the famous Texan. He looks the part, he has that perfect blend of good looks and vulnerability (while also being able to pull off a jerk), and he’s from one of the country music hotbeds: Austin, Texas. Now, I’m not expecting Powell to pull off a Townes Van Zandt, Blaze Foley, or Guy Clark type of performance (though I’d kill to see him sing “Waiting Around to Die,” “Clay Pigeons,” or “L.A. Freeway”), but I’m fully sold on him playing a country singer of some type. It could be like Tender Mercies but with more laughs…

I Don’t Know Much About The Story, But The Premise Sounds Like Classic Judd Apatow

Admittedly, not much has been said about the plot, but when announcing The Comeback King’s title in April 2026, Universal Pictures revealed the movie will center on a “country western star in free fall.” With Glen Powell leading the movie’s cast (more on the supporting players in a bit), it seems like a safe bet to assume that the Anyone But You and The Running Man star will be playing that country singer facing his demise and possible rebirth.

This whole concept of a once-famous and well-respected artist having a “falling back to Earth” is something that Judd Apatow can pull off quite well, both when it comes to writing and directing. We’ve seen it in movies like Funny People and even Heavyweights when you think about it. Finding that perfect balance between humor and heart and comedy and drama has long been a gift of Apatow’s, and I cannot wait to see how that translates to a movie set in the world of country music.

A Movie Penned By Powell And Apatow Piques My Interest

Not only is Glen Powell a full-fledged movie star at this point in his career, but he’s also starting to do more and more behind the scenes as well. From being a credited co-writer with Richard Linklater on the director’s Hit Man to producing the 2024 Blue Angels documentary, he’s slowly becoming a bigger force on both sides of the camera. Well, we can add another screenwriting credit to his name, as Powell wrote The Comeback King alongside Judd Apatow.

When speaking about the movie in a January 2026 interview with Deadline (when the project was still untitled), Apatow talked about the tone of the film and hinted at finding comedy in tragedy before singing Powell’s praises as a writer:

This pairing piques my interest in several ways, but there are two that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since learning about the project. First, how much of Powell’s life experiences in Texas and becoming a massive star in Hollywood will be worked into the script. Secondly, how will these two mesh as collaborators? Could this be the next great pairing? We shall see.

The Supporting Cast Could Steal The Show, Especially Stavros Halkias

What has me even more excited for The Comeback King is the supporting cast. I’ve already gone over how Glen Powell will be leading the show, but I just have to gush about this group of actors that’ll be joining in on screen: Cristin Milioti, Madelyn Cline, Stavros Halkias, and Li Jin Hao. Each of these actors has shown off their scene-stealing talent in recent years, and I honestly think they can bring out the best in Powell and the movie’s script. That said, there’s one name on that list that has me the most excited: Stavros Halkias.

A Baltimore native who sounds like a wise-cracking character in The Wire, this foul-mouthed, over-the-top, and unique comedian has been tearing up comedy clubs for the better part of two decades now, and I love that he’s finally reaching mainstream audiences. From his appearances on Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney (his riffing with fellow Baltimorian John Waters is comedy gold) to his brief yet unforgettable performance in Bugonia, this guy is on top of the world right now. You love to see it. I know I do.

One last thing… There have been some great country music movies over the years, but a fair chunk of those have been biopics or gut-wrenching dramas (or sometimes both). That said, it’ll be nice and refreshing to see a more comedic approach to the world of country music, its tears-in-my-beer ballads, and colorful cast of characters. That’s what I’m excited about.

There has been no shortage of support for Stephen Colbert following the cancellation of The Late Show last year. Now, as we sadly count down the days on the 2026 TV schedule to his final telecast, the love hasn’t stopped pouring in. In fact, at the Golden Globes, tons of celebrities showed their appreciation for the host with some very kind words, while others, including Judd Apatow, shared their thoughts on the show coming to an end.

Last summer, when Colbert’s program got canceled, the late-night hosts reacted and shared their support for him alongside a bunch of other celebrities, including Judd Apatow. Then, at the 2026 Golden Globes, he showed that level of support again when he was asked to talk about the host for The Late Show's TikTok on the red carpet. In response, he said:

The Knocked Up director wasn’t the only one asking Colbert to stay on the air, either. Kumail Nanjiani used his time on the carpet to talk about why the host needs to keep doing The Late Show, saying:

Sadly, Colbert will have to stop on Thursday, May 21. That’s the official last day of his show. However, for the next four-ish months, he’ll keep going on this “flaming toboggan ride” and delivering episodes every weekday on CBS at 11:35 p.m. ET that show why people were so quick to sing his praises on the red carpet.

Now, while many don’t want The Late Show to end, the sad reality is that it will. So, the question becomes: What will Stephen Colbert do next? Well, Colbert has joked about his next gig and asked Netflix or Amazon to call him. He’s also made it clear that he wants to “land this plane” in reference to his current show, and noted that that's where his full focus is at the moment.

Well, while Colbert might have his focus on finishing The Late Show strong, others have ideas. For example, on this red carpet, Overcompensating star and comedian Mary Beth Barone threw out this idea:

It certainly will be interesting to see what Stephen Colbert does after his show comes to an end. However, whatever it is, I’m sure tons of people will be ready and willing to support him.

That was shown in this video too, as the other celebrities who spoke to the show on the red carpet were quick to compliment Colbert with words like:

• “Stone cold fox.” -Ayo Edebiri
• “Legend. Articulate. Kind.” -Paul Mescal
• “Wise, intelligent hero.” -Mark Ronson
• “Hilarious. Insightful. Iconic.” -Paul W. Downs
• “Poised. Regal. Joyus.” -Hudson Williams
• “Lovely, gentleman, sensitive.” -Keegan Michael Key
• “I love Stephen Colbert. I wrote Stephen, you can ask my publicist, a literal love letter.” -Justine Lupe

That’s not even all of them, either. There’s more.

So, all this is to say, the love for Stephen Colbert is strong, and so is the anger toward his show’s cancellation. Even though it’s been months since the news broke about The Late Show ending, and there are still months left before its final episode, people are still ready and willing to sing the praises of this late-night show host, and I love to see it.

Knocked Up is considered one of the best movies of the 2000s, and I watched it multiple times when it first came out, relaying the story of career-minded Allison, who gets pregnant after a one-night stand. When I saw the title on the 2025 Netflix schedule, I decided to throw it on for the first time in well over a decade, and I’m shocked that nearly 20 years after it was first released, one side plot is as hilarious and relevant as ever.

The main story in Knocked Up revolves around Katherine Heigl’s Allison trying to make a relationship work with Ben (Seth Rogen) after they learn they’re going to have a baby. The Judd Apatow movie stars a good portion of the Freaks and Geeks cast as Ben’s stoner housemates, as well as Apatow’s wife and daughters — in other words, A+ casting. Still, the performance that stuck out to me after all this time was Ryan Seacrest playing an exaggerated version of himself.

Allison is an up-and-comer at E! News, and she ends up being the crew member on the other end of Ryan Seacrest’s epic rant about the Hollywood celebrities who waste his time.

Upon being notified that Jessica Simpson is late for her interview, the host makes it clear that he doesn’t have time to wait on her, because he has to be at American Idol. Then he really gets going:

Somebody get this man a cookie!

Jessica Simpson probably doesn’t deserve to be the poster child of the kind of celebrity Ryan Seacrest is complaining about here, but it’s so funny to me how much of the rest of it is still relevant. The man still has 97 jobs, and he’s definitely just as famous (if not more so) than anyone he shares airtime with.

In fact, now he’s the one getting interviewed a lot of the time, and the question he’s being asked is, “Do you sleep?” Wheel of Fortune contestant Jarri Machelle-Melton posed that query to him on the October 1 episode, TV Insider reports, to which Ryan Seacrest responded:

The best comedy has a certain percentage of truth to it, so it’s almost surprising to me that Ryan Seacrest would agree to a bit where he’s shading young Hollywood so hard and saying they “fuck his day up.” (Can you imagine him saying that to his Wheel of Fortune contestants?)

I’m so glad this Knocked Up side plot exists, though, and it was just one part of the Judd Apatow comedy that made it worth the rewatch. The 2007 classic is available to stream now with a Netflix subscription.

Anyone who’s followed along with Steve Carell’s career knows that 2004 and 2005 were huge years for him. After working as a correspondent on The Daily Show since 1999, he was cast as Brick Tamland in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, then in the following year, he started playing Michael Scott in The Office, as well as wrote, executive produced and starred in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Carell’s popularity quickly skyrocketed, and as it turned out, The 40-Year-Old Virgin originated from an A+ comedy sketch that he pitched director Judd Apatow during the making of Anchorman.

Apatow, who both helmed The 40-Year-Old Virgin and co-wrote the script with Carell, shared this information while reflecting on the comedy movie turning 20 years old. Carell already knew Apatow from the latter having produced Anchorman, and it was during that shoot that he was asked to come up with feature ideas. As Apatow recalled to THR:

Yes, long before Steve Carell was interacting frequently with Jon Stewart on Comedy Central, he was part of the Second City comedy troupe, and a classic case of this being a small world, future fellow Daily Show alum Stephen Colbert was his understudy. Carell’s idea of a guy boasting about sexual escapades that never happened didn’t work out as a sketch back then, but over a decade later, it proved prime material for turning into a feature film. We even get that very poker game in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, where Carell’s Andy talks about how a woman’s breast feels like a “bag of sand.”

It’s a good thing Steve Carell mentioned this comedy sketch to Judd Apatow as cameras were rolling on Anchorman, otherwise we wouldn’t have gotten one of the best movies of the 2000s. Carell was joined onscreen by Catherine Keener, Paul Rudd, Seth Rogen, Romany Malco and Elizabeth Banks, among others. Although The 40-Year-Old Virgin remains the sole time Apatow directed Carell in a movie, the two crossed paths again when the latter produced Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues.

Stream The 40-Year-Old Virgin with a Prime Video subscription if you feel inclined. Steve Carell’s most recent movie, Mountainhead, can be viewed with an HBO Max subscription, and Apatow’s last comedic directorial effort, The Bubble, is accessible with a Netflix subscription.

Comedy is a lot harder to pull off successfully than it's often given credit for. It makes sense that some of the best filmmakers in history began their careers as comics, or at least comedic actors, given how a great comedian's mind works. They see the world in completely different ways, and that way of looking at things often means great movies, like some of the best rom-coms of all time, but they aren't always comedies. Here is our list of great comics who became great filmmakers.

Mel Brooks

You really couldn't have this list without Mel Brooks. His movies, which he's been making for an astonishing seven decades, never fail to disappoint. His career stretches back to the 1940s! He reinvented comedy on film with his early movies like The Producers, Blazing Saddles, and Young Frankenstein, and while he doesn't do as much directing these days, he's still killing it when he does.

Jordan Peele

Of all the comedians-turned-directors on this list, the biggest departure from his acting career to his directing career has to be Jordan Peele. He first entered our collective consciousness with his legendary sketch comedy show Key and Peele, but starting with Get Out in 2017, he's become one of the premier horror directors in modern Hollywood.

Amy Poehler

Like so many comedians over the last 50 years or so, Amy Poehler got her big break on Saturday Night Live. She left the long-running comedy show in 2008 to work on her next hit show, Parks & Recreation. In 2019, she directed her first movie, Wine Country, and followed that up with 2021's Moxie.

Christopher Guest

Some of the most quotable movies of all time have come from the collective minds of the ensemble casts that Christopher Guest has assembled for his movies, like Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind. He serves as the director, but he gives great leeway to his fellow cast members in all of the movies.

Paul Feig

Though he's best known as a writer and a director these days, Paul Feig started as a stand-up comedian when he first arrived in Hollywood in the 1980s. He struggled as an actor before scoring a role in Heavyweights in 1995. While working on that movie, he met writer Judd Apatow and the two co-created Freaks and Geeks. The rest is history.

Ben Stiller

Ben Stiller's biggest early break came in the Ben Stiller Show on MTV, which blended sketch comedy with music videos. From there, Stiller basically took over Hollywood to the point that it seemed like he was making a dozen movies a year! Okay, maybe not that many, but he was in a lot of movies, including many that he directed, like Reality Bites, The Cable Guy, Zoolander, and Tropic Thunder.

Mike Nichols

EGOT winner Mike Nichols directed some of the most iconic movies in Hollywood history. Movies like The Graduate, Working Girl, and The Birdcage. Nichols started his career as part of the comedy duo Nichols & May alongside Elaine May, who also became a filmmaker of some renown.

Charlie Chaplin

There are few people in Hollywood history who are as important to the growth of the industry as Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin wrote, starred, and directed almost all his major hits from the silent era up until A Countess from Hong Kong in 1967. He even scored many of his movies. He started in show business in the very early 20th Century in comedic roles on stage before movies were even invented.

Rob Reiner

As the son of the great Carl Reiner, Rob Reiner has comedy in his blood. His biggest fame early came as Mike "Meathead" Stivic in All in the Family, but for most of the last half-century, he's been known for his writing and directing, creating such movies as This Is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride, and When Harry Met Sally..., among many others.

Chris Rock

Like many SNL alums, Chris Rock has had an incredible career in Hollywood. He started acting as a teenager in New Jack City, but he quickly became known for his stand-up act and his work on SNL. He's long been a writer and producer, and he started directing in 2003 with his directorial debut, Head of State. He's been busy directing ever since, in addition to everything else he does.

Judd Apatow

One of the most successful comedy directors in the last few decades is Judd Apatow. He's a one-man show, in many ways, writing, producing, and directing hits like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, The King of Staten Island, and This Is 40. He's also produced a whole slew of successful comedies, like Bridesmaids, Anchorman, Step Brothers, and Pineapple Express. That doesn't even get into the TV shows he's produced or co-created, like Freaks and Geeks, Girls, and Crashing.

Harold Ramis

Without question, Harold Ramis belongs on the Mount Rushmore of comedy writers and directors. The list of movies he's directed and written (or co-written) is amazing. Caddyshack, National Lampoon's Vacation, and Groundhog Day are just the tip of the iceberg. Like so many in his generation of comedians, he started in sketch comedy at Second City in Chicago.

Ricky Gervais

Ricky Gervais gained worldwide fame when he co-created, co-wrote, and starred in the original version of The Office in the U.K. He's created a slew of shows since, and could even be credited with helping create podcasts with his early podcast, The Ricky Gervais Show. The stand-up comedian started directing films in 2009 with The Invention of Lying.

Penny Marshall

We lost a lot when Penny Marshall died in 2018 at age 75. She began her career in comedic roles, most notably as Laverne DeFazio, first on Happy Days, then in her own spin-off, Laverne & Shirley. Before long, though, she transitioned to directing. Her first movie, Jumpin' Jack Flash, introduced the world to Whoopi Goldberg as a comedic actor (her lone previous credit was in the drama The Color Purple) and went on to direct beloved hits like A League of Their Own and Big.

Seth MacFarlane

Seth MacFarlane started mostly as a comedy writer, which is hardly a surprise. He then created the animated shows Family Guy and American Dad for Fox. He made his directorial debut with Ted in 2012.

Albert Brooks

The legendary Albert Brooks started his career in sketch comedy in collectives like The Credibility Gap and appeared on variety shows in the late '60s and early '70s as a stand-up. His first directing gig was as part of the first season of SNL, before directing his first feature, Real Life, co-written with his buddy Harry Shearer. His later movies include classics like Defending Your Life, Mother, and The Muse.

Keenen Ivory Wayans

The Wayans brothers have certainly left a huge mark on Hollywood over the years, and the oldest sibling, Keenen Ivory Wayans, is the one who got them all started. He created and directed In Living Color, which made him a household name, but he had already directed I'm Gonna Git You Sucka before that. His biggest success, of course, is the Scary Movie franchise.

Carl Reiner

Carl Reiner got his start as a writer and actor in comedy sketches on two shows starring Sid Caesar, Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour. He then teamed up with fellow writer from the shows, Mel Brooks, and together they released comedy albums in the early 1960s. By the end of the decade, he was directing movies, with his two most notable hits, The Jerk and Oh! God, coming in the late '70s.

Cheech Marin

One of the biggest comedy duos of the '70s is, of course, Cheech & Chong. Before long, Cheech Marin was directing movies without his partner, including his directorial debut, Born in East L.A., in 1987.

Woody Allen

WE couldn't have this list without Woody Allen. Setting aside any personal feelings people may have towards the actor for his questionable personal life, Allen is, hands down, one of the most successful comedy film directors in Hollywood history. The list of movies he's written, directed, and starred in is far too long to list here. He developed his famous persona while working as a stand-up comedian in New York in the 1960s.

Michael Keaton

Michael Keaton was one of the most successful comedic actors of the 1980s with movies like Mr. Mom, Beetlejuice, and Johnny Dangerously. He started taking on more dramatic roles as the decade came to a close, and of course, he starred as the Caped Crusader in Tim Burton's Batman. He made his directorial debut in 2008 with the drama The Merry Gentleman and, more recently, directed the underrated Knox Goes Away in 2023.

Bob Odenkirk

Along with David Cross, Bob Odenkirk first broke big on Mr. Show with Bob and David, but that was after years in sketch comedy on shows like SNL and The Ben Stiller Show. He has gained his biggest fame more recently as the character Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad and the spinoff Better Call Saul (which somehow never won an Emmy).

Jerry Lewis

His comedy might not have been for everyone, but you can't argue with Jerry Lewis' incredible success over decades in Hollywood. Of course, he started as part of a duo with Dean Martin, but he soon took off on his own with movies like The Nutty Professor and The Bellboy. He directed both those movies as well, and would continue to direct his own movies throughout the '60s.

Donald Glover

While still in college, Donald Glover started doing sketch comedy in New York City. After graduating, he became a writer on 30 Rock first came to the public's attention in Community on NBC. His biggest critical success came with the show he created and produced the show Atlant,a in 2013. His first feature film directing gig came with Bando Stone & the New World, which is a companion piece to his album of the same name.

Jeff Garlin

For most people, Curb Your Enthusiasm is where they first saw Jeff Garlin, but his career goes back further than that. He also starred in The Goldbergs before abuse accusations led him to leave the show. Over the years, he's directed a number of movies, like the indie rom-com I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With and 2017's Handsome, which you can watch with a Netflix subscription.

Buster Keaton

Like Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton was a huge figure in the silent era of Hollywood. Also like Chaplin, the comedian started in theater at the dawn of the 20th century and then began writing, directing, and starring in his own films in the teens. He was one of the biggest stars of the early film industry, making more than a dozen hits in the 1920s.

Bob Saget

Not only is one of the dirtiest comedians of all time (and his version of The Aristocrats joke proves it), Bob Saget was also so beloved TV dad and wholesome host of America's Funniest Home Videos. Saget's first directorial credit came in the hilarious and underrated Dirty Work, working with Norm McDonald and Artie Lang on what must have been just a wild film shoot.

Aziz Ansari

Aziz Ansari had his breakout role as a member of the cast of Parks and Recreation, but he was already an experienced stand-up when that show took off. He directed his first film, Good Fortune, which he also wrote and stars in.

Jerrod Carmichael

Jerrod Carmichael is one of the most popular stand-up comedians in recent years and got his first major exposure with The Carmichael Show on NBC in 2015. He made his directorial debut in 2021 with On the Count of Three, which he also stars in alongside Christopher Abbott and an ensemble cast that includes Tiffany Haddish, J.B. Smoove, and Henry Winkler.

Bo Burnham

Bo Burnham made his name as literally a one-man show with his musical comedy YouTube channel that he started in 2006 (the very early days of YouTube). His first job as a director came in 2018 with Eighth Grade, which he wrote and stars in, as well.

Robert Townsend

Robert Townsend was groundbreaking as a Black comedian-turned-filmmaker in the 1980s when he wrote, directed, and starred in movies like Hollywood Shuffle, The Five Heartbeats, and Meteor Man, which is a comic book movie that deserves a reboot.

Bobcat Goldthwait

Without a doubt, one of the strangest movies mentioned in this list is Shakes the Clown, which was the first film directed by legendary stand-up comedian Bobcat Goldthwait. He's directed seven independent films since Shakes and they are always unique and funny.

For almost 50 years, Saturday Night Live has been run by the steady hand of its creator, Lorne Michaels. Save for a period of time when he left the series in the 1980s, the Canadian comedy mogul has been at the head of this landmark NBC program, and continues to do so throughout the 2025 TV schedule. That being said, I imagine it would surprise the world to learn that there was a point when the network tried to replace Michaels, and an equally stunning candidate was apparently among the prospective hires.

On behalf of the 50th anniversary of SNL, and the release of the new book Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live, I reached out to author Susan Morrison to discuss the tome in question. When asking her about what she felt were the most surprising stories in the book, both of her answers had to do with Lorne Michaels’ very stewardship. One story was about how the father of Saturday Night Live almost didn’t do the show, simply because he didn’t want to do it in New York.

However, the more shocking story shared with CinemaBlend is the anecdote on how control was almost taken from him, with Judd Apatow apparently considered as a replacement. Susan Morrison started that tale with this recollection:

To further set the scene, Morrison shared that this course of action was apparently being considered after the time period of Adam Sandler and Chris Farley’s SNL departure. At that point, NBC and producer Don Ohlmeyer spurred the higher-ups to conduct secret interviews, which included the eventual writer/director of The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up.

This wasn't the first or last time that the Michaels/Ohlmeyer conflict would lead to firings, as anyone who's seen Norm MacDonald's SNL hosting gig from the year after his firing could tell you. At this specific point in time, It's no surprise why Apatow was considered to take over, as he had both The Ben Stiller Show andThe Larry Sanders Show’s run under his belt by time Saturday Night Live Season 20 ended in 1995.

In her research for Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live, Susan Morrison also learned how Mr. Apatow felt about both the show, and the process that led to him being interviewed to possibly run things. Sharing those details with CinemaBlend, here’s the rest of how that tale shook out:

Lorne is a book that came along at the right time, with its release arriving just two days after Saturday Night Live’s 50th anniversary special. So learning new stories about the series’ progress through five decades of history is something fresh in everyone’s minds. It sees Susan Morrison’s unique position in that firmament offering a convenient window into the anxiety-ridden history of SNL.

The current articles editor for The New Yorker, Morrison actually has a claim to fame that most devotees of the series would readily cite. As a writer’s assistant on the ill-fated NBC series The New Show, she worked with Lorne Michaels in those wilderness years.

Just like any SNL star whose made an epic return after they’ve left, Michaels’ mark on the series going forward can still be felt to this day. Recognizing that truth only makes this story all the crazier to consider, as who knows if the series would have made it to its 25th anniversary, much less the era of the Peacock subscription, without him.

For more stories like this, I recommend checking out Susan Morrison’s Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live, which is currently available at all fine booksellers. Meanwhile, the upcoming SNL hosts and musical guests can still be found at the usual time and place: 11:35 PM ET, every Saturday night, on NBC.

Several Hollywood-related topics have received significant attention amongst the general public as of late. One of them is the ongoing legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in relation to their work on the 2024 film It Ends with Us. The subject was actually brought up in a public setting this past weekend, when Judd Apatow joked about it during an awards ceremony and had the room laughing. And, before that, he also took a jab at Kevin Costner and his Horizon: An American Saga films.

This Saturday, the Directors Guild of America Awards were held at the Beverly Hilton, where filmmakers were honored for their work over the past year. Judd Apatow served as host this year, which marked his sixth time holding down that position. During his address to attendees, he tackled politics by mentioning the likes of U.S. President Donald Trump, Elon Musk and more and referenced The Substance along with other hit films. He also took the shot (via THR) at the aforementioned western epics:

What the Knocked Up filmmaker was referring to was the fact that the first film in Kevin Costner’s four-part saga went belly up at the box office. The actor/director/writer/producer himself invested a lot of his own money into the productions. Following its release last summer, Horizon: Chapter 1 (which garnered mixed reviews) earned $37.8 million against a $50 million budget. That sum is arguably what led to the release date for the upcoming Horizon: Chapter 2 to be delayed from 2024 to 2025.

Judd Apatow eventually moved to the topic of films that did perform well at the box office last year. In doing so, he discussed the smash hit musical fantasy flick Wicked. Apatow lauded Jon M. Chu’s film for its success, before he quipped that “usually to make that much money you have to sue Blake Lively.” While that comment alone generated laughter, the comedian’s overall assessment of the situation involving the lukewarm-reviewed It Ends with Us:

“Hazarai” is a Yiddish term that essentially means “junk” or “junk,” and what the Superbad producer seemed to be saying is that the legal situation represents a lot of hoopla over one movie. The matter began in December 2024 when Blake Lively filed a legal complaint against Justin Baldoni and his Wayfarer Studios banner, accusing him of sexual harassment on the set of the profitable It Ends with Us and for allegedly partnering with others to launch a smear campaign against her. Earlier this year, Lively formally sued Baldoni over the aforementioned claims. For his part, Baldoni denied the accusations and eventually sued not only Blake Lively but her husband, Ryan Reynolds and more for alleged defamation, extortion and more.

Such jokes from Judd Apatow aren’t all that surprising, as the veteran filmmaker is known for his sharp wit. He also tends to be quite topical when it comes to his sense of humor and, historically, he’s had no problem being as blunt as he deems necessary. As of right now, his barbs haven’t garnered responses from Kevin Costner, Blake Lively or Justin Baldoni. Whether they’d actually feel compelled to respond is unclear. At present, what’s evident is that Apatow still doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to his jokes.

Over the more than half century of Bob Newhart's career in showbiz, he became a sitcom legend and movie scene-stealer. It's therefore not surprising that many stars of the small and large screen wasted no time in paying tribute to the actor following his death at the age of 94. Nothing could be more appropriate for the man who was the lead of more than one of the best sitcoms of all time!

Mark Hamill may be best known for his work on the big screen as Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise, but like Newhart, the majority of his credits are actually television, mostly for voice work on projects like Batman: The Animated Series. With the hashtag #RIP, the actor nodded to Newhart and The Bob Newhart Show when he posted this on X (formerly known as Twitter):

Mayim Bialik certainly knows her way around a sitcom after Blossom and The Big Bang Theory, with Bob Newhart guest-starring on the latter across six episodes. There's a reason why he ranks among that show's greatest guest stars and earned a spot in the final season! In a statement to People about the late actor, Bialik said:

Mayim Bialik wasn't the only Big Bang Theory alum to open up in the wake of Bob Newhart's death. Kaley Cuoco, who played Penny on all twelve seasons of the sitcom, wrote in an Instagram Story:

While Bob Newhart earned legend status largely due to all of his success on television, one of his most beloved projects has to be as part of Elf cast. Christmas movie co-star Zooey Deschanel said in a statement:

Filmmaker Judd Apatow also had a lot to say in tribute of Newhart. On X, he posted "Bob Newhart made the world a better place for a really long time," and went further in a statement to People:

Comedian and politician Al Franken shared his own perspective on working with Newhart, citing when the actor hosted Saturday Night Live during his tenure on the NBC sketch comedy show. Franken wrote on X:

Jamie Lee Curtis, who has been working on Freaky Friday 2 this summer, perhaps summed up what so many people seem to be feeling when she shared this sentiment on Instagram:

While the loss of Bob Newhart is certainly sad, it's also heartwarming to see so many stars come out to share stories of what he meant to them, whether they worked with him or not. His death at the age of 94 was first reported on July 18.

Judd Apatow is one of the most important comedy directors of our generation, with the filmmaker having his name on movies like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up or Trainwreck, just to name a few. So when he was recently asked about the future of comedy on the big screen, I think he had a completely valid (and optimistic) take on the whole thing. And yes, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is involved.

When Judd Apatow recently spoke to Vulture, the interviewer claimed that the future chances for comedies in theaters “has gotten worse” in recent years, pointing to the director’s recent movies like The King of Staten Island and The Bubble going straight to streaming. Here’s how he responded:

That’s right, the biggest movie of 2023 was Barbie, which made 1.4 billion at the worldwide box office, breaking major records for Warner Bros and making it to this year’s Oscars. This caused the journalist to push back, claiming that calling Barbie a comedy would be like calling a Marvel movie a comedy. Here’s what Apatow said next:

Certainly a massive draw of Barbie is the fact that it's based on a massive IP, but Judd Apatow is absolutely right in terms of its genre. If one could categorize it into one genre, it would absolutely be comedy! That’s different from a movie, let’s say like Deadpool, which is full of comedy, but would be first categorized as a superhero flick. Barbie is based on a famous property, but the movie absolutely deserves the comedy win!

When speaking further about the future of comedies on the big screen, Judd Apatow shared that he thinks the genre simply just needs “another hit or two” to return in a bigger way to theaters on a regular basis. The director maintained that Hollywood executives tend to see successes and decide to greenlight more of the same kind of thing. Apatow shared he finds that Hollywood will “chase anything that does well” and “generally are averse to risk taking.”

With that in mind, we’re already seeing an influx of movies based on toys on the way from Hollywood. Plus, Margot Robbie is going to make a Sims movie next. But Apatow also believes Barbie could inspire more comedies to hit theaters, that is if more people perceived it as such. We named Barbie the best comedy of 2023, but it was among a rather healthy mix of entries from the genre last year like Theater Camp, Joy Ride, Bottoms and No Hard Feelings – all of which went to theaters.

But, of course, none of them beat the phenomenon that was Barbie. In the end, it all comes down to what people put their money into! If you want to see more of a certain kind of movie, go and see it in theaters!

Considering just how hard it is to make in show business, it's remarkable how many celebrities have been good friends with other successful celebrities since before either was famous. Some going back to childhood. Here's our list of celebrities that have been friends for longer than they've been famous. 

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck

It’s probably the most famous friendship in Hollywood. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon grew up together in Cambridge, MA, and they’ve pretty much been besties ever since. They were even uncredited extras together in Field Of Dreams and both found early roles in School Ties together. Of course, in 1997 when they wrote and starred in Good Will Hunting together, their collective fame blew up. 

Al Gore and Tommy Lee Jones

Another set of long-time friends are former Vice President Al Gore and Tommy Lee Jones. They were roommates when they attended Harvard together. At the 2000 Democratic National Convention when the party nominated Gore to be its candidate for President, Jones said in a speech,

Christopher Reeve and Robin Williams were both taken from the world when they were too young. The two have more in common than tragedy though. Reeve and Williams forged a lifelong friendship after meeting as graduate students at Juilliard and rooming together while in school. Reeve even credited Williams with showing him that life would go on after a horse riding accident left him paralyzed. 

Madonna and Debi Mazar

Entourage star Debi Mazar and global superstar Madonna have been friends since the early ‘80s when they met in the hipster scene of the East Village and the dance clubs of New York City. They stayed friends since that time and Mazar has had Madonna’s back when internet trolls take shots at the pop music legend. Mazar also appeared in a number of Madonna’s early videos, like “Papa Don’t Preach.”

Ving Rhames and Stanley Tucci

Stanley Tucci and Ving Rhames were roommates as undergrads at SUNY Purchase. Tucci even gave Rhames his nickname, Ving, which is short for Erving. Rhames let the world in on that tidbit when he presented Tucci with a Golden Globe in 1998 for Tucci’s role in Winchell. The two have only worked on the same project together once though, 1995’s Kiss of Death. 

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler

Amy Poehler and Tiny Fey first met at the improv school Improv Olympic (now known as iO Theater) in the early ‘90s when they were both just starting out. In the years since, they’ve stayed friends and worked together a lot, including on SNL and hosting the Golden Globe Awards together. 

Brad Pitt and Sheryl Crow

Brad Pitt and Sheryl Crow have known each other since college. Pitt was a year behind Crow at the University of Missouri and according to Crow, they didn’t know each other well, but they did cross paths a lot, She worked with his fraternity during Greek Week and she was friends with his college girlfriend. She also jokes on the podcast that she dreamed she would marry Brad Pitt. 

Rick Moranis and Geddy Lee

Geddy Lee was the bass player and lead singer of Rush, one of the most popular bands of the last 50 years. Weirdly, his biggest hit wasn’t with Rush but was a song called “Take Off” that appeared on a Doug and Bob McKenzie album. He sang on the track because he’s been lifelong friends with Rick Moranis, who played Doug McKenzie. The two went to grade school together. 

Lauryn Hill and Zach Braff

Lauryn Hill attended Zach Braff’s bar mitzvah. You read that right. Braff told a story to Seth Meyers (whom Braff has known since college) about his bar mitzvah being “musical theater themed” and his partner in the games the kids played was none other than Ms. Lauryn Hill, who went to high school with Braff. 

Holly Hunter and Frances McDormand

Holly Hunter and Frances McDormand first met years before they both found success in Hollywood. They even roomed together in the Bronx. While they were roommates, McDormand met Joel Coen, of the Coen Brothers, and they started dating. Eventually, they would marry and Joel and Ethan Coen would cast both McDormand and Hunter in Raising Arizona, one of many roles the Coens have cast McDormand in. 

B.J. Novak and John Krasinski

B.J. Novak and John Krasinski were in the same class in high school at Newtown South High outside Boston. They were friends long before they both starred in The Office, though in high school, according to Novak, Krasinski was more of a jock, while Novak was a theater kid. Obviously, both ended up wildly successful as actors. 

Gwyneth Paltrow and Maya Rudolph

Maya Rudolph and Gwyneth Paltrow have been friends for years. Rudolph’s father, Richard, was best friends with Paltrow’s father, Bruce, and Maya and Gwyneth attended the same school, St. Augustine by the Sea School in Santa Monica.

Adam Sandler and director Judd Apatow famously shared an apartment in Los Angeles when they were both just starting out in the industry. When Sandler landed his gig with SNL and moved to New York, he continued to pay rent on the place because he was worried he’d immediately get fired from the show. He didn’t and the rest is history. 

Lisa Kudrow and Conan O'Brien

Conan O’Brien met Lisa Kudrow in 1985 when he moved to LA out of college and decided to take an improv class. According to O’Brien, he walked into the class on his first day and immediately identified Kudrow as someone that was going somewhere. 

Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson 

Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson first met in their sophomore year at the University of Texas. Both were in a playwriting seminar and Anderson immediately was intrigued by Wilson. They have stayed close over the years and Wilson is a regular player in Anderson’s films, starring in eight of them. 

Danny DeVito and Micheal Douglas

Starting way back in 1975 Danny DeVito and Micheal Douglas have been working together. Douglas produced One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest which DeVito had a supporting role in. The two have been friends for much longer, going all the way back to 1967 when they met on beach and immediately bonded. 

Cameron Diaz and Snoop Dogg

This might be the most surprising on the list. Cameron Diaz and Snoop Dogg went to Long Beach High School together. They've known each other since they were teenagers and, according to Diaz.

Brad Pitt and Jason Priestley

Before they were stars, Brad Pitt and Jason Priestley, as roommates, apparently would have contests to see who could go the longest without showering or shaving. Somehow, they were both still really, really good looking despite this. 

Laura Linney and Brooke Shields

Star of The Blue Lagoon, Brooke Shields, and star of You Can Count on Me, Laura Linney, have been counting on each other since they were children. Brooke Shields celebrated Laura Linney's 56th birthday in 2020 by posting a throwback of the two when they were just kids. 

Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance

Courtney B. Vance and Angela Bassett got married in 1997, which was well after both had become successful. Their friendship, however, goes much further back. They met at Yale Drama School in the '80s, though both were dating other people at the time. They would reconnect years later and they've been together ever since. 

Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton

Way before they found fame together on The Simple Life, Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton were friends. According to Hilton on the show, they've been best friends since they were two years old. In September 2023, Hilton celebrated Richie's birthday by posting a bunch of photos of them through the years, from childhood to the present. 

The Great Gatsby was not the first time Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire worked together. They appeared together in This Boy's Life back in 1993. Their friendship, however, goes back even further having met early on when they were both struggling to land their first roles and auditioning for the same parts. They are still close friends. 

Nicole Kidman and Naomi Watts

Technically Nicole Kidman and Naomi Watts were already working actors when they met on the set of Flirting back in 1991. Neither were famous yet, and the fellow Aussies became fast friends, and have stayed very close ever since. 

Adam Levine and Jonah Hill

Adam Levine and Jonah Hill have been friends since childhood. They've often joked about each other in interviews and really seem to have a close bond. They are so close that Jonah Hill even officiated Levine's wedding in 2016. 

Kate Hudson and Liv Tyler

Liv Tyler and Kate Hudson have a lot in common, starting with all of their parents being famous themselves. They also both grew up in Los Angeles and attended the same high school together, Crossroads School for Arts & Science, where they first became buddies. They starred in Dr. T & the Women together in 2000 and are still very close friends

Jamie Dornan And Andrew Garfield

Jamie Dornan And Andrew Garfield have been mates for almost 20 years. The two were roommates in the early days of their careers, running in a pack with the likes of Charlie Cox, Robert Pattinson, and Eddie Redmayne as they struggled to land auditions. It's safe to say they've all done pretty well since then. 

Timothée Chalamet and Ansel Elgort

Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City is one of the most prestigious arts high schools in the country. It's no surprise that it has its fair share of famous former students. Two of those are Timothée Chalamet and Ansel Elgort, who were in the same class and have been best friends since attending. 

Scarlett Johansson and Jack Antonoff

Like so many others on this list, actor Scarlett Johansson and musician Jack Antonoff attended high school together. What makes them different is that they even briefly dated and went to the prom together at New York City's Professional Children’s School. They broke up after graduation, but they'll always have prom! 

Mel Gibson and Geoffrey Rush

The country of Australia is not all Mel Gibson and Geoffrey Rush have in common, When both were starving artists trying to make it early on, they shared an apartment that, according to Gibson, didn't have any furniture. A few decades later it's safe to assume both have plenty of places to sleep and sit down after all their success. 

Kristen Bell and Matthew Morrison

Kristen Bell attended the prestigious New York University's Tisch School of the Arts alongside Glee star Matthew Morrison. They were friends in college, and as Bell told Us Weekly in 2010, the two briefly dated. She told the magazine, 

David Lynch and Peter Wolf

In what might be the oddest pairing on this list, director David Lynch and musician Peter Wolf were once roommates at School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston in the 1960s. Wolf, who is famous for being the lead singer of the great J. Geils Band told The New York Times that the living situation didn't last long, as he was way too messy for Lynch. 

Kirsten Gillibrand and Connie Britton

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of Massachusetts and actor Connie Britton first met on a study-abroad trip to China while both were in college at Dartmouth. The pair have remained friends in the decades since and often post about each other on social media and of course, Britton endorsed Gillibrand when she first ran for the senate.

Actors, musicians, politicians, roommates, childhood friends, and starving artists. Each pair on this list have unique stories, that are somehow also very similar. They say birds of a feather flock together and this list of celebrities who were friends before they were famous seems to prove that point over and over.  

Judd Apatow is an accomplished multihyphenate with plenty of iconic TV and movie projects on his long resume. Many of them remain quotable to this day, despite how many years might have passed since their initial release. Case in point: Apatow revealed the Knocked Up baby is 17 now… and I’ve never felt older. 

Knocked Up hit theaters in 2007, and was a critical and box office hit. Knocked Up’s cast was lead by Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen, with Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann playing supporting characters who would get their own spinoff with This Is 40. The movie ended with protagonist Alison giving birth, and Apatow breaking the internet and blowing minds by revealing on Instagram that said baby is now a whopping 17 years sold. Check it out:

Suddenly I’m suffering from back pain and have the urge to tell children to get off my lawn. And I don’t even have a lawn. It’s crazy how time flies, as made evident by the fact that the Knocked Up baby is nearly old enough to vote. Does anyone else feel the need to re-watch that classic comedy?

Judd Apatow shared this Knocked Up throwback to his nearly 1 million followers on Instagram. And the comments section is filled with both fans and celebrities facing the shock of this revelation. That includes some of the movie’s cast including none other than Seth Rogen himself (who previously reminisced about one scene that was “messed up” for the cast). Rogen’s comment was short and sweet, reading:

Same, though. Knowing just how much time has passed, I really am curious about how Alison and Ben’s lives ultimately played out after the events of Knocked Out. Were they able to get their happy ever after as a couple, or did they decide to consciously uncouple and coparent together? Maybe answers will come with This Is 50, which is a project Judd Apatow has had in development and would mark the third installment of the franchise. 

Rogen wasn’t the only Knocked Up cast member who seemed shook by seeing jut how much time has passed. Actor Martin Starr, whose collaboration with Apatow dates back to being in the cast Freaks and Geeks, also commented a similar sentiment, saying:

Well at least we all feel the same. I have to wonder if Katherine Heigl will end up getting in on the fun; the Grey’s Anatomy alum had a had a storied history with Knocked Up. Heigl famously offered criticism about the female characters of the movie, starting a beef between her and Seth Rogen. 

We’ll have to see if the Knocked Up threequel This Is 50 ever makes it to theaters. In the meantime, check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.

It’s hard to believe our fun party movie Superbad came out over a decade ago. According to Seth Rogen, Superbad is a good high school movie that truly stands the test of time. Critics and audiences were “McLovin’” this Judd Apatow movie for its hilarious dialogue, the chemistry between the cast, and its raunchiness. However, comedy collaborators Apatow and Superbad star Jonah Hill didn’t appear to be joking with each other during the comedy film’s commentary recording when the two were heard arguing with each other over an F-bomb.

Jonah Hill holds a record for cursing so much on-screen as it was reported that he threw 376 curse words across his career. So, it's not all that surprising that you'll hear him dropping f-bombs off-camera too, including in the commentary for Superbad’s special edition DVD. This can be heard firsthand, in a viral TikTok of the special feature that includes Judd Apatow and Jonah Hill going head-to-head when the 21 Jump Street actor dropped an f-bomb during the commentary recording. You won’t believe your ears when you take a listen to this trending Tiktok below.    

In the video that shares a fragment of Superbad’s DVD commentary, you can hear the cast talking about the scene when the character of Seth accidentally gets hit by a car after he chickens out over attempting to buy booze. Jonah Hill remarked:

This led to Judd Apatow ordering Hill to watch his language since his daughter, Maude, was with him. At the time, she was only 9, so it makes Apatow’s comment understandable. The Wolf of Wall Street star initially apologized. However, he went on to himself by saying there was cursing throughout Superbad and that the producer's daughter shouldn’t be around during the recording if he didn’t want her to hear curse words. 

The Knocked Up director continued asking Hill to stop cursing in front of his daughter as he continuously dropped s-bombs and f-bombs while defending his choice words. Apatow stood his ground as well, saying he had to bring his daughter to the recording because there was no one around to watch her. 

Then, The Wolf of Wall Street actor asked the future Euphoria star what she thought about hearing curse words. She awkwardly replied that she heard curse words all the time which shocked her protective father. As the video goes on, it became clear that Hill’s sailor’s mouth was not going to stop, it was heard in the recording that Apatow left in the middle of the commentary, taking his daughter with him. The cast begged the Freaks and Geeks developer not to leave with the Cyrus actor continuing to spew sarcastic comments toward the comedy director.

Comments on this viral TikTok explained that some felt like this argument was staged for the commentary. That wouldn’t be a left-field theory considering it doesn’t appear there was bad blood between this comedic duo after Superbad because one Jonah Hill’s best movies is the Apatow-directed project Funny People which came out two years later. Other comments seemed to side with Hill since the cast was there to talk about heavy language film.

So, it’s hard to tell if the recorded argument between Jonah Hill and Judd Apatow in the Superbad commentary was a hilarious skit or a tense moment between the two. Whatever it was, it looks like it's in the past, as the two have remained good friends since the seminal 2007 comedy. To see the film that caused this minor squabble, you can watch Superbad on your HBO Max subscription. Also, make sure to stay tuned to the 2023 movie schedule to see what Apatow and Hill have coming out this year. 

Tom Cruise is such a mysterious and personal person. He tends to stay out of the spotlight these days (after a few years of highly publicized scrutiny), and mostly emerges when he is filming a video during a death-defying stunt or promoting his latest blockbuster. Because Cruise’s latest movie Top Gun: Maverick is in the ongoing awards race, however, he is becoming an easy target for award-show hosts. During the most recent Golden Globes ceremony, comedian Jerrod Carmichael took a swing at Cruise for his commitment to Scientology. And Judd Apatow joined the chorus while emceeing the Directors Guild of America Awards over the weekend. 

Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski was in the field of directors competing for the DGA on Saturday, and while he lost to The Daniels (for helming the magnificent Everything Everywhere All At Once), his presence opened the door for Judd Apatow to take some well-timed shots at Cruise and his lifestyle. The DGAs are not televised, but Variety ran some of Apatow’s jokes, which started off by going after Cruise’s height. The director/comedian said:

Tom Cruise often gets discussed for being shorter than his co-stars. Though, the dirty secret about some of your favorite movie stars is that a great many of them are short. Or, shorter than you might expect. Apatow didn’t stop there, however, taking aim at Cruise’s belief in Scientology, and linking that to the harrowing stunts that the 60-year-old actor pulls off on his own. Well, with the help of an enormous support system. Apatow joked:

Judd Apatow didn’t reserve all of his jokes for Tom Cruise. The DGA host also took aim at Austin Butler for the way he has stayed in his Elvis voice since filming has wrapped. Then he took dual shots at his longtime leading man Seth Rogen, and legendary director Steven Spielberg, for their collaboration on The Fabelmans.   

Because Tom Cruise rarely finds himself on the receiving end of harsh jokes, we don’t know how he is taking it. Hopefully he realizes that these jabs all are in good fun. And at the very least, we know that he didn’t storm the stage, Will Smith style, and take out his aggressions on Judd Apatow’s face. So that’s a positive. 

Making a comedy in the studio system has to be a push-and-pull of negotiations regarding what jokes can be made, and which ones have to land on the cutting room floor. With regards to the new comedy Bros starring Billy Eichner in the lead, so many of the jokes are rooted in pop culture, and take aim at everyone from Debra Messing to Garth Brooks. This is part of the reason why Bros is being referenced alongside some of the best romantic comedies of our generation, and is also receiving so many positive reviews. Part of the reason why Bros so successfully navigates the choppy waters of studio politics is because producer Judd Apatow and director Nicholas Stoller have been down this road so many times before, and have hilarious stories to tell regarding the process. 

Before helming Bros, Nicholas Stoller cut his teeth on two Neighbors movies, the classic breakup film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and Russell Brand’s Get Him to the Greek. His experiences with adult comedies taught him how the MPAA feels about genitalia, which led Judd Apatow to relay this very funny and awkward story about a Criss Angel joke they almost included in Greek. Stoller and Apatow appeared on CinemaBlend’s ReelBlend podcast and told us: 

Criss Angel is an extremely popular magician and a Las Vegas icon. He’s usually known as The Mindfreak, and he almost got his own movie back in the day. So including him in a joke because the location of the scene was Vegas makes sense. Angel has been active on the scene since 1994, so audiences in the theater for Get Him to the Greek in 2010 would have recognized him and laughed along at the punchline. Though, as Judd Apatow notes, he’s not essential to the laugh in this case.

Maybe not Gabe Kaplan, but we get the idea, Judd Apatow. As was the case with Get Him to the Greek, there are more than enough jokes in Bros that leaving a few of them out of the final cut doesn’t affect the finished product. Billy Eichner spoke about some of the sex scenes that he wrote into the movie, while co-star Luke Macfarlane opened up about why his Hallmark Movie fans will enjoy what they see in Bros now that it’s in theaters. We’ll see how the comedy does in theaters during its opening weekend, compared to other upcoming 2022 movies that are heading to multiplexes in the weeks to come. 

Anticipation has been high for Billy Eichner’s upcoming LGBTQ+ rom-com Bros, and that excitement has only grown since the movie received stellar reactions following its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Eichner wrote the script with director Nicholas Stoller and stars opposite Hallmark movie favorite Luke Macfarlane in the comedy that is making history with a main cast of openly LGBTQ+ actors. The reviews are in, so let’s see what the critics have to say about the rom-com ahead of its September 30 theatrical release.

Along with the two leads, Bros features tons of queer talent, including the likes of Bowen Yang, Harvey Fierstein, Guillermo Díaz, Dot-Marie Jones and Ts Madison, so it sounds like there’s plenty of reason to be excited. The story is centered around Bobby Lieber (Billy Eichner), an unlucky in love podcaster who becomes involved with Aaron Shepard (Luke Macfarlane). So what time of rom-com calamity will ensue? Let’s see what the critics have to say, starting with CinemaBlend’s review of Bros. Our own Corey Chichizola rates the film 4 stars out of 5, saying the cast and the screenplay combine for an utterly hilarious and heartfelt experience. He says: 

Carla Renata of The Curvy Critic calls the movie outrageous and insightful, with a script that will penetrate the most cynical of hearts while making audiences laugh out loud. From the review: 

While that review pointed to Bros’ humor, Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair praises Billy Eichner for finding a balance between the brand he’s known for and some truly sincere moments. More from the review:

Ryan Lattanzio of IndieWire grades the movie a B, calling Bros a gay homage to the classic rom-com. The review notes that one thing the movie gets it right is that it doesn’t try too hard to pander to gay audiences; it just sees and hears them. The critic says: 

Dan Bayer of Next Best Picture rates it an 8 out of 10, saying that Billy Eichner and Nichols Stoller do a great job of showing how straight and gay relationships are different, and yet it still fits the classic romantic comedy mold. He calls this movie the “standard bearer for a new generation of films that will not have this film’s burden of representation.” More from the review: 

It sounds like critics are excited about Bros, and it’s impossible to ignore how big of a deal this movie is in terms of representation. If this is one you need to check out on the big screen, you’ll be able to do so starting on Friday, September 30. Also be sure to check out our 2022 Movie Release Schedule to see what other movies are coming to theaters soon. 

Romantic comedies are a tried and true genre in the film world, one that moviegoers often watch and re-watch time and time again. The latest addition hitting theaters shortly is none other than Nicholas Stoller’s Bros, which makes history with its all-queer cast and two male protgaonists. Comedy icon Billy Eichner stars as Bobby, and also wrote the screenplay. And while Eichner wrote some wild sex scenes for Bros, he didn’t think about having to sit through them with his family later.

Billy Eichner wears a ton of hats for Bros, as the movie’s star, screenwriter, and executive producer. As such, his vision for the raunchy R-rated comedy was very much at the center of its story. As were the sex scenes that he wrote, which he actually had to perform as the movie’s lead. Eichner explained this while appearing on Late Night with Seth Meyers, telling the titular host:

He’s got a point. Judd Apatow, who produced Bros, is known for having wild and thoroughly hilarious sex scenes in his movies. While Billy Eichner mentioned Trainwreck and Bridesmaids, there’s more examples in classics like The 40 Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Saving Sarah Marshall. And so Billy Eichner wanted to continue this tradition with his new queer rom-com.

Billy Eichner’s comments make a great deal of sense, and tease just how raucous the events of Bros will be when it arrives in theaters. The movie’s R-Rating and the comedian’s signature sense of humor (which was on display as he and Paul Rudd brought back Billy On The Street) make way for countless laughs, although starring as Bobby did put him into some of the more intimate scenes. Later in that same interview, Eichner explained that dichotomy, saying:

While Billy Eichner’s various contributions to Bros is definitely something to be proud of, that doesn't mean that it’s not uncomfortable to watch himself in the movie’s various bonkers sex scenes. That feeling was seemingly multiplied when his loved ones were there. And the funny part is that he had no one to blame but himself, as a producer and writer of the project.

The early reception for Bros has been super positive, after the movie had its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. At the time of writing this story, it’s currently sitting at 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. We’ll just have to see how audiences react to the upcoming rom-com, and what the experience is like in theaters. After all, raunchy comedies are always better when in a room full of laughing moviegoers.

Luckily the wait of Bros is nearly over, as it’ll arrive in theaters on September 30th. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience. 

Billy Eichner and Jud Apatow’s “Bros” is so much more than a romantic comedy, If you ask CinemaBlend’s Sean O’Connell. Watch as he reviews the new film after its Toronto International Film Festival premiere, highlighting all of the nuances it brings to the rom-com genre that makes it stand out as a must-see this fall.

Video Chapters:

00:00 - Intro

00:46 - A Different Billy Eichner

02:28 - A Whole Lot Of Heart

04:41 - An Elevated Rom-Com With Stellar Cameos

06:42 - Star Review and Final Thoughts

Writer/director Judd Apatow hasn’t dealt with sequels too often in his career, with This is 40 acting as the closest thing to a follow-up in his body of work. Though he was merely a producer on the film, Apatow has always been keen to make a sequel to the 2007 pop culture hit Superbad. While it’s a project you won’t see on the list of upcoming movies for this, or any other year, the idea that he shared was actually a pretty promising prospect.

During an appearance on Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum, Judd Apatow spilled the beans on what he wanted Superbad 2 to be about. Following a natural progression, his pitch also came with a perfect defence for taking such a huge gamble to begin with. Here’s what Apatow had in mind for the potential follow-up:  

The expectation with any sequel is that there’s a good chance the goodwill towards the first movie might be squandered. Examples of such a happening are very subjective, as seen in Michael Cera and Judd Apatow’s back and forth about Superbad 2. However, seeing as Cera’s opinion is also shared by writer/star Seth Rogen, one can see why the sequel hasn’t exactly caught fire. 

At the same time, Judd Apatow does throw a loving reference to Jonah Hill’s pitch for Superbad 2, which would follow Seth and Evan’s lives in a retirement home. While that does sound like a pretty fun idea for a new start, the Apatow pitch above isn’t horrible. This holds especially true when you remember the story of Superbad and how ended.

Concluding on the final visual of Michael Cera’s Evan and Jonah Hill’s Seth respectively splitting up to hang out with Becca (Martha MacIsaac) and Jules (Emma Stone), it seems like they’ve got their futures ahead of them. Superbad’s fast paced march to adulthood embodied a bittersweet version of the typical happy ending a teen party movie such as this would land on. To see Seth backslide in Superbad 2 and fall back on his friendship with Evan would have been a fun new obstacle, with tons of comedy potential.

Looking at where the Superbad cast is now, as well as how long it’s been since that first movie, the chances of any sort of follow-up are pretty slim. Which is a shame because Judd Apatow’s concept for Superbad 2 actually could have been as poignant and funny as the film that inspired it. At least there’s a somewhat viable option with Christopher Mintz-Platz’s suggestion for a female reboot to Superbad, provided of course such a thing could be successfully created and not immediately compared to the already hysterical Booksmart.

In the current world of Judd Apatow films, you can see his latest project The Bubble, as it’s currently streaming as part of the vast library of Netflix movies. While Superbad 2 may never happen, at least Apatow still has his concept for a This is 40 sequel in the works, aptly titled This is 50. So Judd may get his dream sequel yet, just in a different form. 

 Had HBO and the legendary comedian George Carlin been partnered from the start, he probably wouldn’t have had to deal with all the censorship issues that led to his career skyrocketing, thanks in part to the ever-incredible “Seven Dirty Words” routine. By the time he did land at the cable network in 1978, it was clearly a match made in stand-up comedy heaven, and his 14-special legacy is remarkable all on its own. So it’s perfectly fitting that Judd Apatow’s two-part retrospective documentary George Carlin’s American Dream will premiere on HBO a month before the 14th anniversary of his death, and the first trailer (seen above) is an instant reminder of his mastery with a microphone.

George Carlin’s American Dream will premiere its first installment on Friday, May 20, with the second part airing the next night, giving comedy fans a weekend full of brilliant wordplay, logical arguments, and bullshit-detecting from a guy who called it with the best of them. Presumably along with a hippy-dippy weather report or two along the way. And it won’t just be a retread of all the bits mega-fans might already be familiar with — not that there would be anything to complain about if that was the case — because things will probably skew a bit more emotional than an on-stage highlight reel. So whether it's laughing so hard I cry, or crying so hard that I laugh, I accept all outcomes.

The new HBO doc is filled with never-before-seen footage of all types. Perhaps most deserving of attention will be the archival footage to be watched, read and heard. The creative team was given access to previously stored-away films, photos, letters, diaries, and audio recordings from George Carlin’s life. Having been a stand-up comedian for 52 years, on top of being a best-selling author who dabbled in TV and other creative projects, the guy no doubt had a mountain of written material built up. I hope to see some unused jokes, since anything that landed on Carlin’s cutting-room floor would be the best jokes in most other comedians’ acts. 

Beyond that, as the trailer shows, George Carlin’s American Dream will also feature a wide swath of excellent stand-up comedians sharing stories about working with Carlin and/or how he impacted and inspired their own lives and careers. That lineup of interview subjects includes Chris Rock (who would probably have quite a conversation with Carlin about this year’s Oscars going FUBAR thanks to Will Smith), Jerry Seinfeld, Bette Midler, Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Bill Burr, Steven Wright, W. Kamau Bell, Judy Gold, and more. 

From George Carlin’s personal life, the documentary will feature memories being shared by his daughter Kelly Carlin, second wife Sally Wade, late brother Patrick Carlin, manager Jerry Hamza and more. While the comedians can obviously speak to certain parts of Carlin’s career, the family interviews will provide further insight into George’s childhood years, his drug-addled struggles, his run-ins with police and other authority figures, and other elements that fueled so much of his timless comedy.

George Carlin’s American Dream is the passion-geared work of its well-known co-directors Judd Apatow, whose The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling hit all the right notes for fans of that late comedian, and Michael Bonfiglio, who helmed Season 1 of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman and 2021’s TV doc Patrice O’Neal: Killing Is Easy. They know their way around well-crafted and respectful docs, and the fact that everyone involved knew enough to make this thing big enough to spread across two nights tells me it’s in the right hands. 

Here’s hoping this doc is amazing enough to thwart anyone in Hollywood who might want to dramatize Carlin’s life for a feature biopic. Unless it can utilize Bill & Ted Face the Music’s technology that would somehow allow a hologram version of Carlin to play himself in that kind of project, I don’t want it. And I probably don’t want the hologram version either, but I’m holding out for that hypothetical trailer before I commit to any final opinions. Can we at least get The George Carlin Show streaming somewhere? Those with HBO Max subscriptions can stream some of his cable specials, while an Amazon Prime subscription provides access to his final special from 2008. 

Filled more dirty words than a muddy dictionary — and jokes of a far superior quality — George Carlin’s American Dream will make its debut on HBO on Friday, May 20, with Part 1 airing at 8:00 p.m. ET, and Part 2 airing in the same time slot the very next evening, on Saturday, May 21. Installments will also be available to stream on HBO Max accordingly. 

Playing Andy Stitzer in The 40-Year-Old Virgin served helped boost Steve Carell's movie profile after mainly being known from television. But the real moment he became a movie star was the infamous wax scene, where Andy was turned into a human jack-o-lantern. Of course, the scene also gave us the iconic line “Ah, Kelly Clarkson!” But screaming the Voice coach’s name took on a new meaning, as The Office alum almost lost his nipple filming the infamous scene, according to The 40-Year-Old Virgin’s director.

While “Ah Kelly Clarkson” is an innocent line, it and its namesake have never been associated with the loss of body parts… until now. But that’s what almost happened, according to the comedy movie’s director and writer Judd Apatow. The 40-Year-Old Virgin director spilled to Vanity Fair how the waxer in the scene may have fibbed about her experience, which worked out eventually.  

According to Judd Apatow, the actress in the scene might not have been the only one who lied. He was doubtful of Steve Carrell’s claim of never being waxed before filming the infamous moment. The director/producer speculated the film and TV actor had some manscaping done before as his chest hair was too even. The Trainwreck director used Carell’s natural hair design as evidence.

Filming The 40-Year-Old Virgin's wax scene was all about capturing the reactions of Romany Malco, Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd. The three actors held back their laughter at first. Eventually, the director was trying to capture their genuine reactions. Of course, the hilarity faded as Judd Apatow director pointed out the moment where things almost took a dangerous turn.

The near-dangerous hair removal incident led to the daytime host being shouted out in agony. This isn’t the first time Judd Apatow had addressed using the pop singer’s name. He revealed that Kelly Clarkson's name was on a list of clean words for Carell to shout during the scene. He gave Seth Rogen credit for putting her on the list, as well as crafting a dirt list. Clarkson eventually confronted the Knocked Up actor over the public constantly saying her name, eliciting an apology from him.

Going back to the waxing scene itself, Judd Apatow revealed the scene was Steve Carell's idea, as he co-wrote The 40-Year-Old Virgin's script with the director.

Thankfully, the Hollywood actor was down to take one for the team and created comedy gold in the process. Of course, The 40-Year-Old Virgin will continue to be regarded as one of Steve Carrell’s best roles. If you want to bust out laughing at Carell’s pain again, you can stream the classic comedy with a Hulu subscription, an Amazon Prime subscription or an HBO Max subscription.

Acclaimed comedy filmmaker Judd Apatow has made his Netflix movie debut with The Bubble — a movie about a movie being filmed in COVID times. A group of actors travel to a closed set to film the sixth installment of a big dinosaur franchise. Some digs at the Jurassic Park franchise are to be expected, but did the movie hit its mark overall? The critics were able to view the movie ahead of its release, and their reviews are in to give us some insight.

The Bubble features an impressive ensemble cast that includes the likes of Karen Gillan, Pedro Pascal, Fred Armisen, David Duchovny, Keegan-Michael Key, Kate McKinnon and Rob Delaney. Judd Apatow’s wife Leslie Mann and daughters Iris
and Maude Apatow also star. Let’s take a look at what critics are saying about The Bubble, starting with our own CinemaBlend review. Mike Reyes rates Apatow’s latest venture 2.5 stars out of 5, saying its promising premise and quick start doesn’t keep its strength throughout. The unquestionably talented cast helps land more hits than misses, he says, but that doesn’t make up for a thin final act:

Gabriella Geisinger of Digital Spy rates the film 2 out of 5 stars, saying it suffers from perhaps too much self-awareness. The reminder that people with wealth experienced a much different pandemic than those without, even while claiming to be “in the trenches” is not fun:

Ben Kenigsberg of The New York Times says with this cast it would be hard not to get some laughs, and he calls out Karen Gillan for being particularly funny, but overall the movie doesn’t flow, and the satire is safe and airless:

Leah Greenblatt of EW grades the movie a C-, saying this is one of Judd Apatow’s less successful projects. Half-formed subplots and big cameos are strung together for this subpar COVID comedy:

Jake Cole of Slant rates The Bubble just 1 out of 4 stars, noting that the satire never finds its target. Judd Apatow’s scattershot approach to satire follows any joke that lands with another that undercuts it:

Even the critics who don’t think The Bubble quite hit its mark say that the A-list cast provides some laughs. If you’d like to see for yourself how strong you think Judd Apatow’s penchant for satire is, this movie is available for streaming now with a Netflix subscription. Also be sure to check out these other movies on Netflix, as well as our 2022 Movie Release Schedule to start planning your next movie night!

In equal measure, the film industry loves to both pay tribute to itself and poke sarcastic fun at its own hypocrisies. For every movie like The Artist and La La Land that gives into the warm and fuzzy romanticism of the artform, there’s a Bowfinger or State And Main that counters with sharp, cynical satire. These films pop up on the radar here and there, and co-writer/director Judd Apatow’s big Netflix debut, The Bubble, takes aim at blockbuster filmmaking in the age of COVID. While it starts as a high-energy snark fest that chooses its targets carefully, by time the finale plays out, this scattershot dino-snore craters like a comet.

The Bubble features a diverse assortment of characters that are united by one common goal: to continue the blockbuster series of Cliff Beasts films, now shooting its sixth chapter, titled The Battle for Everest: Memories of a Requiem. A fictional saga that’s as ridiculous as it sounds, it’s also the project that welcomes back cast member Carol Cobb (Karen Gillan). Seeing as she sat out Cliff Beasts 5: Space Fury in the name of making another, more ill-advised film, Carol’s return is already a dicey prospect among the ensemble.

Making matters worse is the fact that this fifth sequel is being made during the COVID-19 pandemic. All of these details, minus the previously absent lead, firmly set Judd Apatow’s sights on lampooning the Jurassic World franchise as his centerpiece. With a cast that includes David Duchovny, Keegan-Michael Key, and Pedro Pascal, as well as Apatow veterans/family members Leslie Mann and Iris Apatow, there are a lot of ingredients that could have made The Bubble work. Yet somehow, it doesn’t. 

The Bubble may be Judd Apatow’s most mainstream comedy, which helps give the film a promising start.

When you typically think about Judd Apatow’s style of comedy, The Bubble isn’t the first sort of movie you’d think of. With his resume consisting mostly of improv-friendly comedies dealing with more personal stakes, like The 40-Year Old Virgin, Funny People, or even the more dramatic The King of Staten Island, the focus of a traditional Apatow movie is typically more limited. 

Expanding his thematic horizons with co-writer and South Park vet Pam Brady, Judd Apatow takes a huge leap in storytelling with The Bubble, resulting in what’s probably his most mainstream comedy film. Though we do see into the intimate lives of our extensive cast, the story about completing the latest Cliff Beasts movie has Apatow playing in a much bigger sandbox. Tackling an ensemble farce is actually what helps the earlier acts of this story play to a promising start. 

The Bubble foregoes the discovery of new fresh comedic stars as seen in his past films with Ken Jeong and LeBron James, but the cast is stoked with a bunch of faces you should definitely recognize – which is both good and bad. 

An insanely stacked cast of talent helps this satire land more hits than misses, but it’s not enough to patch up a thin final act.

The characters in The Bubble set up the playing field for what could have been an exciting and acerbic poke at big budget movies. Figures like Sean Knox (Keegan-Michael Key) stand in for religious action heroes who like to push things to the edge, while the story of Lauren Van Chance (Leslie Mann) and Dustin Mulray (David Duchovny) explores Hollywood power couples that can’t seem to stay separated. There’s even Krystal Kris (Iris Apatow), an influencer who was cast to make sure the TikTok generation is catered to. 

It's easy to guess quite a few of the messages The Bubble tries to impart as it adds to its menagerie of spinning plates. Not all of the antics on display work, as everything’s kind of thrown into a grab bag of concepts, loosely hung on a story about making a movie. Both the ensemble and the story have way too many moving parts to bring everything to a satisfying conclusion, and while the movie has laughs, it also gets in its own way.

For example, there’s a subplot where actor Dieter Bravo (Pedro Pascal) seems to have touched off an inadvertent love triangle between himself and two members of the hotel staff (Maria Bakalova and Vir Das). Realistically, you’d expect Bakalova and Das’ characters to get into escalating situations where they’re trying to win Pascal’s affection, amping up the ridiculousness along the way. After one scene of that sort of interplay, however, The Bubble drops that gag almost entirely, leaving the audience wanting more – especially given that Pascal delivers a comedically adept performance. 

For a little while, it feels like the movie might even be building to the usual over-the-top climax that you’d expect in a farcical comedy, with all of the disparate plot threads weaving together as tensions build toward explosion. Were this story to have had even half an ounce of that energy in its final act, more of The Bubble’s missteps could have been forgiven. That doesn’t pan out, though, as while everyone gets to have their moments of glory, they don’t really mean that much in the subpar finale.

With too many characters and subplots being juggled, The Bubble bursts as one movie trying to take on a series’ worth of ideas.

In the past, Judd Apatow has been criticized for the length of his films. Recent years have seen him staying closer to the two-hour mark, and The Bubble continues that tradition. Editing seems to have an evolved importance in the modern age of Apatow. The downside in the case of his Netflix feature is the shears seem to have trimmed bits here and there that were important to the story. Around the hour-and-a-half mark, the entire enterprise starts to drag, leaving the rest of the movie feeling like a tedious chore to get through.

During the depicted extended shoot from hell, the patience of the characters wears thin and causes them to do desperate things to escape The Bubble's maddening hellscape. Rather than amp up the audience with these energetic attempts at fleeing to freedom, the film loses its way with each ridiculous attempt. By the end, our characters just want to go home, despite all signs pointing to that not happening anytime soon. I couldn't help but identify with their plight, and I was watching this movie in my own living room. 

Trying to be meta but not having the conviction to stick the landing, The Bubble even calls itself out for not having a proper ending – having its characters level that complaint against the movie within. What was once full of madcap zest and promise becomes another finished product that just can just barely call itself that. Not even the impressive all-star cameos strewn throughout can make enough of an impact to save it, as those are also examples of good ideas that aren't followed through with logical punchlines. 

While The Bubble strives to be a movie that can take a bite out of Hollywood’s ego surrounding blockbusters and “the new normal,” it bursts under the weight of ideas it’s trying to carry. A limited series-worth of jokes and plotlines are distilled into a single film, which starts going somewhere fast only to hit a brick wall on the way to the finish line.

Can COVID be funny? Comedy mastermind Judd Apatow seems to think so, as he’s been hard at work making a pandemic themed comedy for Netflix entitled The Bubble. With the streaming original’s first trailer released into the wild, we now have an idea of what to expect in this all-star comedy, featuring Karen Gillan and Pedro Pascal among its ranks. If you were anticipating the cast juggling dinosaurs, illness, and Doctor Strange, you’re absolutely right; and we’d like tonight’s lottery numbers, please. 

Giving the world its first look at the latest from Netflix, the premise for The Bubble is pretty simple. As production on the sixth film in the wildly popular dinosaur franchise Cliff Beasts is filming, all of the rigors of a COVID-compliant set are being followed. With a cast that’s getting punchier by the day, all sorts of disasters are waiting to happen, which include but are not limited to the stuff we mentioned before.

It’s a recipe for comedic disaster, especially when The Bubble’s completely stacked cast includes the likes of David Duchovny, Keegan-Michael Key, and Borat 2’s breakout star Maria Bakalova. Amid all of the vomit-inducing, drug filled excitement, we do have a big question to ask: how the hell did they get Benedict Cumberbatch AND Marvel to sign off on that gag with his face? Guess that’s just a testament to The Power of the Dog. 

You might be thinking that this fresh madness looks familiar, besides the obvious digs at the Jurassic World franchise, and you’d absolutely be right. That’s because a couple of days ago, Netflix teased The Bubble with a fake trailer to Cliff Beasts 6: The Battle for Everest. Here’s what the marketing for the movie within a movie looked like: 

Seeing our first tease for The Bubble starts to more than justify that production wrap dance party we saw Karen Gillan and others engage in. As Judd Apatow has gone and made a full-fledged blockbuster in order to properly mock those very films, it looks like his most technically complex movie yet. We’ll have to wait to see if the final results pan out, but we can already call one thing from the start: David Duchovny is definitely the Jeff Goldblum in this bizarro version of the actual Jurassic World: Dominion cast. 

The Bubble bursts onto Netflix, streaming exclusively starting April 1st. As part of the 2022 Netflix movie schedule, Judd Apatow’s next wild comedy will join a bunch of other intriguing and exciting titles to debut throughout the year. Meanwhile, Jurassic World: Dominion, that movie will be heading to theaters on June 10th, as part of the 2022 movie releases on the books for the year. 

Superbad fans have been clamoring for a sequel since the film dropped in 2007. Murmurings of a sequel have been floating around for years. Some of those involved in the film like Seth Rogen has been apprehensive about revisiting the story. Despite some apprehension, Superbad star Jonah Hill has an idea for a potential sequel. The Don’t Look Up star revealed the only way he would make Superbad 2.

Superbad became Hill’s Hollywood breakthrough as the film took over the box office and pop culture. The Mid90s director has grown beyond the sex-obsessed Seth as evident by his recent work. That doesn’t mean he isn’t willing to return for more hijinks with Michael Cera and Chris Mintz-Plasse in the future. Jonah Hill revealed to W his idea for a potential follow-up.

Catching up with Seth, Evan, and McLovin in an assisted living home sounds like a wonderful premise for a sequel. As morbid as the concept is, it would be nice to see the guys reminiscing about old times while creating new memories. Some sequels are at their bests when audiences get to catch up with characters years later. Catch-up sequels can be cool, but oftentimes, they can end up messing up the original film’s concept. Hill seemed to understand that mindset as he painted a Grumpy Old Men for the Millennial set.

Jonah Hill wasn’t the first Superbad alum to suggest a different angle for a potential sequel. Christopher Mintz-Plasse (aka McLovin) believed the sequel should be female-focused instead of catching up with the original group in the vein of Booksmart. He felt bringing back the original stars for a sequel could tarnish the 2007 coming-of-age film’s legacy. This marked a change as Mintz-Plasse was open to making a sequel in the past. Even producer Judd Apatow was gunning for a Superbad sequel but stopped after no one involved was willing to come back. But it seems like Hill might be ready for another film… just decades from now.

Of course, the original film took over pop culture as lines and scenes were parodied and referenced across all media. That train has continued as a new generation of fans has begun quoting the film. So, Superbad is still leaving an impression on audiences.

Since the coming-of-age film hit theaters more than a decade ago, the cast and writers have grown in their Hollywood careers. If you want to relive every inappropriate line and scene, you can watch Superbad on Prime Video.

The search for an Oscar host has been heating up after ABC announced the awards show would have a host for the first time in three years. There are plenty of big names thrown out there like Tom Holland and Saturday Night Live’s Pete Davidson. Even past hosts like Whoopi Goldberg and Jimmy Kimmel's name have been in circulation. But another past host that has come up is Only Murders in this Building’s Steve Martin. In this case, it wasn’t Martin who threw his name out there. After hearing all the hoopla, the Cheaper by the Dozen star responded to him and his co-star Martin Short being lobbied to host the Oscars.

The Only Murders in this Building co-stars are an incredible comedic duo as witnessed on the popular Hulu series. But that isn’t a fluke given the years of laughter the comedians have delivered to audiences. Steve Martin and Martin Short have teamed up multiple times, which could bode well for hosting the Oscars. Another comedic genius seemed to follow that mindset. Judd Apatow took to Twitter to explain why Martin and Short would be perfect to host the ceremony.  

Apatow was all about the comedians bringing joy and laughter during trying times. Of course, Martin and Short would bring the laughs while lampooning the awards show and the nominees. Steve Martin got wind of the hosting campaign as the internet and the Knocked Up director were all for this to happen. In true Martin fashion, the Father of the Bride star hopped on Twitter to give his take on Judd Apatow’s suggestion.

Of course, Martin had to make light of the whole Golden Globes situation. Imagine how different the Globes would’ve been had Martin and Short hosted the show. Unfortunately, being shunned by Hollywood left the Hollywood Foreign Press to announce the winners on Twitter. So, the Three Amigos co-stars were better for not hosting the maligned ceremony.

This wouldn’t be the first time Steve Martin's name has been synonymous with the Oscars. The Jerk star served as the master of ceremonies for the Academy Awards in 2001, 2003, and 2010. Even though Oscars 2020 was without a host, Martin opened the ceremony with Chris Rock. While The Pink Panther icon hosted three times, this was the first time Martin Short has been brought up in the conservation. That was surprising as Short has hosted several sketch comedy and variety series. If their 2018 comedy special was any hint of a possible fun time, they would be a breath of fresh air for the awards show.

Steve Martin seemed less than enthused to take on the Oscar gig after standing on the big stage a few times. Of course, he and Martin Short might have to maneuver around the Davidson and Holland obstacles if they want to host. Even if Short and Martin don’t co-host the Oscars, viewers can still witness their amazing dynamic by streaming Only Murders in this Building on Hulu. Here's to more zaniness in Season 2.

Tom Cruise is many things. Movie star. Activist. Stunt enthusiast. Father. He’s also a Scientologist -- perhaps the most famous member of Scientology on this planet. So it goes without saying that when he has the opportunity to talk about his faith with a fellow A-lister, there’s a good chance Cruise is going to want to talk about Scientology, and possibly interest them in learning more.

This allegedly is what happened to Seth Rogen, who is making the press rounds in support of his new book, Yearbook. As part of the tour, the Funny People and This Is The End star went on Howard Stern, and the talk show host brought up a story that Rogen tells in the book about going to meet Tom Cruise with his producer-director pal Judd Apatow. Apparently, they wanted to meet with Cruise about a professional collaboration. And as the meeting went on, Cruise steered the topic of conversation to Scientology. As Rogen tells it:

At that point in the meeting, Seth Rogen recalls looking over at Judd Apatow wondering if either of the men were going to bite and give Tom Cruise the 20 minutes he was asking about. Rogen appeared genuinely curious about Cruise’s pitch for Scientology, though Rogen wondered jokingly if he was strong enough to hear Cruise’s pitch and not want to immediately sign up for Scientology. Rogen went on to say to Stern:

As Seth Rogen states, this meeting took place during Tom Cruise’s marriage to Katie Holmes, and they met the couple’s daughter, who at the time had yet to be revealed to the public. Since Suri is 15 years old, that would put this meeting after 2006, which means they might have wanted Cruise for 2007’s Knocked Up or -- and this is what I’m willing to bet -- to play the role that went to Adam Sandler in Funny People (2009). Sandler is a famous comedian who mentors Rogen’s aspiring stand up. Cruise would have made the role very different, but as we know, this collaboration was never meant to be.

Seth Rogen’s book Yearbook seems to be packed with fascinating Hollywood stories like this. It landed on shelves on May 11, so grab a copy right now.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has made things challenging for many of us, in one way or another. When it comes to those working in Hollywood, it’s been more challenging to film projects of any kind, as many have had production starts and stops due to the pandemic. So it’s quite the accomplishment when something actually manages to complete filming, and this was a milestone Marvel’s Karen Gillan was recently able to experience. The actress recently wrapped on her new film and celebrated with a delightful dance party!

Earlier this year, Karen Gillan began filming Judd Apatow’s The Bubble, and her recent Instagram post confirms that the film has now wrapped. In the post, she thanked Judd Apatow and expressed her appreciation and gratitude for having been able to make a film in the midst of a pandemic. And her aforementioned dance party video, which occurred in the makeup trailer, is enough to make you get up and dance! Check out the post down below:

Karen Gillan and the crew certainly found a great way to celebrate the end of filming on The Bubble, and they also chose the perfect song. The Spice Girls’ “Stop” has more than enough energy to get anyone hyped!

Directed, co-written and produced by comedy guru Judd Apatow, The Bubble centers on a group of actors who must remain in a quarantine bubble at a hotel while shooting a film during the COVID-19 pandemic. Needless to say, the upcoming comedy is quite timely and is sure to play on the new normal that’s been created by the pandemic.

Judd Apatow has also assembled an all-star cast to join Karen Gillan in the film. The Bubble also features Pedro Pascal, Keegan Michael-Key, Leslie Mann, Fred Armisen and Borat 2 breakout Maria Bakalova. With a cast filled with formidable comedic talent, Apatow’s latest should generate more than its fair share of laughs.

Other than The Bubble, Karen Gillan has had her hands full with a few other high-profile projects during the pandemic. Last year, she worked on the upcoming sci-fi epic, Dual, which paired her with Breaking Bad alum Aaron Paul. Very little has been revealed from the film but, based on Paul’s behind-the-scenes photo, it looks like audiences are in for an intense ride. Earlier this year, Gillan also travelled to Australia to reprise her fan-favorite role as Nebula for Marvel’s Thor: Love and Thunder, where she was joined by a number of her Guardians of the Galaxy co-stars.

Karen Gillan definitely appears to have had a lot of fun with her experience on The Bubble, and you can’t help but feel happy for her and the rest of the cast and crew for finishing the shoot. Plus, as Gillan alludes to in her post, it shouldn’t be too long before we actually get to see the product of all their hard work.

As of this writing, a release date has not been announced for The Bubble, but it is set to be released on Netflix.

Disaster movies based around a viral outbreak aren’t exactly a new thing to grace our screens from Hollywood, but they are a hot commodity right now. Pandemic movies seem to hit extra hard since the start of our real life pandemic. While there are some popular projects that seem to have been in the works coincidentally ahead of time, other filmmakers are taking advantage of our new reality with new creative productions. Comedic director and producer Judd Apatow is behind a new project that’s going very real-life in a new pandemic comedy coming to Netflix, and the cast so far is pretty impressive, including Karen Gillian and Borat 2’s Maria Bakalova.

According to Deadline, Judd Apatow has snagged some pretty big and relevant names for his new film The Bubble. Karen Gillian and Maria Bakalova will be joined by Keegan-Michael Key, Pedro Pascal, Leslie Mann, Fred Armisen, Peter Serafinowicz, David Duchovny, and Apatow’s own daughter Iris Apatow. Apatow will direct and produce, as well as co-write the script for the Netflix film.

The Bubble takes place during a pandemic (it’s not yet clear if it’s the same pandemic we are facing right now) with a number of actors stuck in a quarantined hotel room as they strive to finish filming a project. The roles the numerous familiar stars will play is not yet released, however it could be speculated that the actors could play themselves in the film if Apatow plans to go hyper real-life.

Judd Apatow has strong connections with some of the cast members, specifically his wife Leslie Mann, who has appeared in a number of his well known films like Knocked Up and Funny People. The cast has more connections with one another, though. There are a number of cast who are connected to the Star Wars franchise (Pedro Pascal and Peter Serafinowicz) as well as Doctor Who (Karen Gillian and again, Peter Serafinowicz). With big names in comedy like Keegan-Michael Key and Fred Armisen, TV veteran David Duchovny (X-Files), Apatow has covered a lot of fandom bases.

Karen Gillan and Pedro Pascal are big names to add to a cast list, as they have been in recent major box office films. Pascal, in between his role under the helmet of The Mandalorian, starred in the newest DC film Wonder Woman 1984 as the main antagonist. Gillan saw success at the box office before the pandemic hit with Jumanji Next Level and The Call of the Wild and is set to reprise her roles as Nebula in the upcoming Marvel films. As for Maria Bakalova, she made a serious splash in Borat 2 and is a favorite for Awards Season attention.

2020 was a tough year with the bulk being clouded by the pandemic, and 2021 has thus far been more of the same. While there’s nothing funny about what we as a people have gone through with COVID, Judd Apatow’s comedic take on a pandemic may just be the kind of thing to lighten the heaviness we’ve all felt during this time-- if only for the duration of the film.

The Bubble does not yet have a release date and is still in the early stages, but has been fast tracked by Netflix, and it may bring us some laughter by the end of the year.

Well, here we go. Judd Apatow, the famous comedy director behind The 40-Year-Old Virgin and his latest The King of Staten Island is heading over to Netflix again. But, this time he’s making a movie and it’s going to be a COVID comedy.

Judd Apatow typically writes comedies about average people dealing with their issues and situations in life. Now it looks like he’s switching gears a little bit. In a first, he’ll be making a feature film for Netflix about a group of actors and actresses caught in a quarantine bubble at a hotel while filming a movie during the current COVID-19 pandemic, according to Deadline.

As of now, there’s no script or actors attached to this project. Judd Apatow is reportedly set to co-write the script with Pam Brady, and he will also direct and produce. Considering the timeliness of the movie, Netflix is fast-tracking the project and wanting to put together an all-star cast.

While this will be Judd Apatow’s first movie with Netflix, he and the heavyweight streaming service have worked together previously on the now-canceled TV comedy Love. That cancellation must not have soiled the relationship, considering Judd Apatow considered them as a potential home for this new project. This time the project will be a bonafide film.

This will also be the first time Judd Apatow has produced a film with a studio other than Universal. To date, they have released some of Hollywood’s biggest comedies. Even The King of Staten Island, which was forced to move to VOD due to the pandemic, saw surprising success. So his moving over to Netflix is a game changer.

That’s not to say Netflix and Judd Apatow have always seen eye-to-eye on things. Last year, when word got out that Netflix was experimenting with a “player control,” allowing users to speed up the video, many directors and filmmakers, including Judd Apatow weren’t having it. Judd Apatow took to social media to voice his displeasure with the technology, saying he’ll “call every director and show creator” to fight them on it.

The timeliness of this new comedy couldn’t be more clear. While many movie productions had been shut down for a time, they’ve since ramped back up, albeit with safety protocols in place, like the aforementioned pandemic bubble. Even before big films were shooting, other big-name actors like Zendaya and John David Washington had filmed during the quarantine.

Of course, Judd Apatow rushing in to make a COVID comedy movie raises some serious questions, like, “Is this too soon?” But Michael Bay may have already beat him to the punch on that front, producing a near-future pandemic thriller that’s already filming. Perhaps Judd Apatow’s deft hand will be able to guide the project through this tough territory? We’ll just have to wait and see.

While Judd Apatow is a talented writer, it’s no secret that he is a massive fan of improvisation. What’s put on paper is important for structure, plot, and character arcs in his movies, but he is also a big believer in on-set magic, and in the production phase of all of his projects he has actors make up material on the day and is known to frequently throw out ideas from behind the camera. There is much less specific emphasis put on the details of his scripts – which is why Bill Burr, during the making of the recent The King Of Staten Island, felt comfortable changing up his methodology during the making of the film, and within a couple weeks on set found himself taking a different approach than normal to the screenplay.

With the new comedy set to hit the physical home video market following its PVOD release this summer, I had the pleasure of hopping on the phone to talk with Bill Burr earlier this month about his performance and working with Judd Apatow, and he was perfectly candid with me when I inquired about the improv experience on an Apatow set. I specifically asked about his relationship with the script during production and if he found himself paying less strict attention to it over the course of filming, and he didn’t exactly play coy about it:

While this is the first time I’ve asked an actor in a Judd Apatow movie about this, would anyone be surprised if this is common practice? Obviously it’s the responsibility of any performer to know and understand the material, but if the person running the whole operation is going off book for the majority of scenes, letting the camera roll, and trusting funny people to be funny, it makes sense that one would not treat every word on the page like holy scripture.

In The King Of Staten Island, which was co-written by Pete Davidson and Judd Apatow, Bill Burr plays Ray Bishop – a firefighter who enters the life of protagonist Scott Carlin (Davidson) when the wayward 20-something gives Ray’s son what ends up being an aborted tattoo. Ray finds out where Scott lives to get some kind of an explanation, but things take a turn when he meets Scott’s mom, Margie (Marisa Tomei), and the two fall for one another. Unfortunately it’s not a relationship that Scott fully condones, primarily because his father was a firefighter who died during a call.

All in all, the film is actually one of the more dramatic features that Judd Apatow has made, but Bill Burr, who is best known as a stand-up, proves wonderfully adept with the dramatic material (a skill he’s previously demonstrated on Breaking Bad and movies like The Front Runner). He also gets some great laughs, though, and further in the discussion about all of the improvisation on set he promised access to extra material that didn’t make the final cut on the home video release.

Speaking of which, you can now purchase The King of Staten Island not only digitally, but also on Blu-ray and DVD where you can find special features like deleted scenes, production diaries, alternate endings, and more. Pick up a copy today, and also be sure to check out my interviews with Judd Apatow, Pete Davidson, Steve Buscemi and Marisa Tomei from earlier this summer.

Nudity has always been fairly common on the big screen, but it's also always been very one-sided. Even when discussing the concept of nudity in film there's an expectation that we're talking about female nudity. Male nudity does happen, but it's so unusual that it's often shocking simply for existing. Such was the case when a penis appeared on screen in Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. The identity of that penis has been unclear, as we never see above the waist of the person in the movie, but writer Judd Apatow says that the offending member belongs to a now-famous director.

Speaking with our own ReelBlend podcast, Judd Apatow said that, while he wouldn't reveal the identity of the penis in the scene, the man who appeared naked in the scene asking John C. Reilly's Dewey Cox if he wanted some coffee, went on to be a film director in his own right. According to Apatow...

I suppose, let this be a lesson to everybody that you never quite know when you're going to end up in life. One minute you're an on-screen penis, and the next you're a successful film director. Not only that, but in being an on-screen penis, you can still learn how to become that successful director. Judd Apatow went on to say that, the penis/director actually told him at the Directors Guild awards that he learned a lot about being a director while being on the set that day. Apatow explained...

And so, of course, this asks the obvious question, who could this stunt penis turned director possibly be? Actually, there's a pretty strong candidate. On the DVD release of Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, there exists a "cockumentary" specifically about the scene, and in it, a man named Tyler Nilson claims to be the one who dropped trou for the scene. IMDb confirms he was in the film, in the role of Bert. 13 years after the release of Walk Hard, Tyler Nilson was nominated for a Director's Guild award alongside directing partner Michael Schwartz for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in First-Time Feature Film for their movie The Peanut Butter Falcon.

So it would seem that the actor turned director in question actually was previously outed. If Tyler Nilson isn't the person in question, then the fact that somebody who is now a major director pretended to be in the scene for the DVD feature, and the actual person is also now a major director, is a pretty wild coincidence.

Check out Judd Apatow's full Reelblend appearance below.

This story contains mild spoilers for Judd Apatow’s The King of Staten Island. Only because it reveals the ending. It’s not a huge plot spoiler, but we discuss the film’s final scene, so be aware.

The ending of Judd Apatow’s The King of Staten Island also feels like a beginning. For the bulk of the film, Scott (Pete Davidson) wallowed in uncertainty and emotional instability. His grief over the death of his father, and his unwillingness to fully mature, prevented him from succeeding as a tattoo artist, or fully enjoying his romantic relationship with Kelsey (Bel Powley). By the end of the film, Scott has followed Kelsey into Manhattan so she can take an important test, and he turns to look up at a very important symbol.

Judd Apatow was a guest on the ReelBlend podcast, and when we discussed the ending of the movie with him, he admitted that he didn’t have the ending worked out until he saw Pete Davidson, in that moment, turn and face the site that used to be the World Trade Center. Now, Scott was looking at the Freedom Tower, which is a symbol of the loss the character felt in the movie. And while Apatow says he filmed a number of different endings, it was his daughter Iris who kept insisting that audiences would only care about the Scott-Kelsey relationship. He said:

Iris Apatow wasn’t wrong. After all of the obstacles that Pete Davidson’s character faces (and overcomes) during The King of Staten Island, we emotionally invest in the on-again/off-again romance Scott has with Kelsey. And as Judd Apatow scouted out locations to stage this emotional scene for those two characters, he came to realize that the spot he chose falls in the shadow of the Freedom Tower, and that was an emotional landing for Scott.

You have to hear this full conversation with Judd Apatow about both The King of Staten Island and his entire career. He was an outstanding guest on ReelBlend, and think you will enjoy it.

Judd Apatow’s The King of Staten Island landed on digital platforms on Tuesday, August 11, and will be available on Blu-ray and DVD on August 25.

Judd Apatow was a trailblazer for 2020. While more mainstream movies such as Mulan or Bill and Ted Face the Music are making their way to streaming services, Apatow took that route much earlier this season with his The King of Staten Island. Now that the Pete Davidson comedy is making its way to home video, Apatow joins the ReelBlend podcast to discuss this film, his career hits, some Popstar rumors, and a whole lot more.

If you have enjoyed ReelBlend’s interviews in the past, this one is going to be a lot of fun.

The boys are down one this week. Kevin McCarthy is on vacation. So the legendary Producer Gabe sits in, and helps us with talking points regarding Mulan going to Disney+, Tenet tickets going on sale for the UK, Candyman director Nia DaCosta getting picked to direct Captain Marvel 2, and the Blockbuster in Bend, Oregon turning into an Air BnB.

Also this week, the guys break down the Netflix thriller Project Power. And they play Regina King Blend, where they celebrate her accomplishments in both film and television.

Be sure to subscribe to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts, including YouTube! You can also sign up to get an extra, exclusive episode of the show each week with a ReelBlend Premium subscription right here.

Judd Apatow is known for overloading his movies with excellent comedians – a benefit of having been a part of the entertainment industry for multiple decades – but those not paying attention may have missed another interesting tendency in his casting process: his habit of working with rap artists. It's a pattern that has continued with his latest directorial effort, The King Of Staten Island, and Apatow had the chance to comment on it while doing the virtual promotional press rounds last month.

Appearing as a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Judd Apatow was asked about the impressive list of talent that is featured in the Pete Davidson-led comedy, including the likes of Marisa Tomei, Steve Buscemi, Bill Burr, and more – but a tangent was inspired with the host's mention of Action Bronson. The filmmaker ran with the subject, and in so doing basically made the comedic suggestion that there are clues via key cameos in his his larger body of work that led to the making of The King Of Staten Island:

Perhaps it can now be a specific goal of Judd Apatow's to get every member of the Wu-Tang Clan to appear in a movie that he at least works on as a producer. Including Ol' Dirty Bastard obviously isn't doable, but it would be cool if fans could be on the lookout for GZA, Raekwon, Inspectah Deck, U-God, and Masta Killa cameos in Apatow's upcoming projects.

As for rapper representation in The King Of Staten Island specifically, the writer/director seemed overjoyed to have the opportunity to discuss the work done by Action Bronson in the new comedy, and added that he isn't the only musical talent that is featured:

Action Bronson's role in The King Of Staten Island is brief, but he most definitely is a highlight. Appearing towards the end of the film, he gets some of the movie's biggest laughs as a man who has sustained a terrible injury and stumbles his way into the firehouse where Pete Davidson's character is alone.

If you haven't seen The King Of Staten Island yet, all that's really stopping you is the motivation, as the film was released on premium video-on-demand last month and is available for both rental and purchase with the click of a button.

Whether you love or hate his style, Judd Apatow has undeniably influenced comedy. As a writer/producer/director or mere influence, Apatow's loose, lighthearted sensibilities— adopted from James L. Brooks, John Cassavetes, and more— are both irreverent and emboldening, shaping a comedy era that's as emotionally resonant as it's richly funny.

It's a tricky balance, but Judd Apatow makes it look easy, allowing his talented performers to influence his scripts with extensive improvisation and other creative freedoms. The results can be shaggy and overly-sentimental, but more-often-than-not, they work. Apatow's movies bring something present and appealing to their tales of adolescent people in self-discovery. He receives his share of criticism, both warranted and not, but we're here to celebrate. 

Here's how we'd rank Judd Apatow's directorial efforts in feature length films.

8. This Is 40 (2012)

Over the course of Judd Apatow's first three features— The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Funny People, respectively —our central characters elevated from emotionally/sexually/intellectually-stunted man-children to more psychologically-tormented influential people in showbiz. While Apatow's work became more personal, it strained from his relatable focus and reliable easy-going comedy. We watched characters struggle with concerns outside most people's problems, related to wealth and ego, that didn't connect with mainstream audiences. With This Is 40, his fourth film, the results weren't poor, but its indulgent, navel-gazing perspective lost what made Apatow's previous films more winsome and personable.

Centered around Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Apatow's real-life wife, Leslie Mann), previously Knocked Up's supporting characters, This Is 40 is a not-so-subtle look at Apatow's marriage/parenthood struggles. It follows a wealthy couple's growing insecurities, i.e. worries regarding their upper-class well-being, coinciding with their 40th birthdays. While our leads remain dependable as comedic/dramatic performers, finding emotional truths despite the therapeutic film's inconsistent tone and hit-and-miss jokes, This Is 40 falters from numerous problems that plagued other Apatow films. Namely, it's too long, shapeless, and self-involved. While Apatow's agreeable filmmaking offsets some annoyances that deprive from wallowing in privileged problems, it falls short compared to his past glories.

7. The King Of Staten Island (2020)

Having used his influence to boost the careers of several now-superstars, including Steve Carell, Seth Rogen, and Amy Schumer, Apatow's eighth film, The King of Staten Island, sees the co-writer/director telling a semi-autobiographical account of Pete Davidson, a troubled personality who impressed many with his raw, self-effacing, open-hearted comedy. Exploring Davidson's bizarro world, where he still lives at home but didn't find success with Saturday Night Live (or elsewhere), The King of Staten Island is a character study on Scott Carlin, a 24-year-old high school dropout with aspirations of becoming a tattoo artist but no honest drive or ambition. Notably following his firefighter father's tragic death, Scott lacks direction.

But things change when Scott's single mom (Marisa Tomei) dates Ray (Bill Burr), a hard-nosed firefighter who provides clarity about Scott's instability. From there, Davidson's cinematic avatar searches for himself. Like many Apatow movies, there's something hopefully cathartic with this film, which Davidson co-wrote. The lead character mirrors many of Davidson's traumas and tragedies; he lost his father in 9/11 and has a history of mental illness. This makes Staten Island more directly dramatic than other Apatow movies, exploring heavy sadness in his familiar themes of stunted masculinity and repressed personal growth. Unfortunately, this story fumbles into formula and cliches. But Robert Elswit's cinematography is gorgeous, Apatow's world-building remains lived-in, and it's a standout cast. It appropriately showcases Apatow's own mature growth.

6. Trainwreck (2015)

While Trainwreck doesn't reach the same heights as Apatow's earlier triumphs, it's a clear step up. The director gained a greater sense of style and a greater understanding of his sensibilities, notably following his adrift This Is 40. Although he's working off a traditional rom-com's model, like Knocked Up, Apatow's more finely-tuned balance of raunchy humor, personable drama, and earthbound characters find success. Similar to Staten Island, Apatow focuses on elevating Amy Schumer's profile, though he works from her own script (his first-time directing another person's screenplay) and provides a woman's perspective — notably following criticism regarding his portrayals of the opposite sex. 

While Schumer's screenplay doesn't break new ground, it's a refreshing template for Apatow in many respects.

Telling the story of Amy, a fictionalized version of the actress-screenwriter's persona, a hard-drinking, free-spirited writer who enters a serious relationship with straight-laced orthopedic surgeon Aaron (Bill Hader) after multiple unstable courtships and one-night-flings, Trainwreck adopts Schumer's irreverent brand of crass, self-deprecating humor and allows this irreverent personality to combat rom-com cliches in an entertaining, eventually accessible fashion. 

The relationship is winning and thankfully more relatable than This Is 40, capturing NYC's vibrant personality filtered through this romantic-yet-tough-to-please woman. While tighter than most Apatow movies, it's overlong at 125 minutes. If Trainwreck was trimmed to 105 minutes, it might've been Apatow's most solid, cohesive film. Nevertheless, Trainwreck is Apatow's polished return-to-form and Schumer's strong leading woman introduction.

5. May It Last: A Portrait Of The Avett Brothers

Admittedly, one doesn't naturally associate Judd Apatow with The Avett Brothers. The comedy filmmaker and the acclaimed folk-rock band don't appear too similar on paper; Apatow's brash characteristics contradicting to Avett Brothers' gentle, smooth sounds. Yet, through HBO's documentary, May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers, you discover unexpected similarities in their processes. Specifically, each of them digs for what feels ethereal and emotionally profound, finding their own euphorias in their creative endeavors. Above all else, The Avett Brothers strive not only for harmony but emotional honesty. They want songs to connect deeply to their listeners' souls. They do this by creating songs as extensions of their souls — deriving from their pain, failures, fears of inadequacies, and reflections on lives lived.

While that's true for many artists, this music documentary does a fine job of discovering this inherent humanity in the band's tunes, particularly as they're crafting their album, True Sadness. Made with Michael Bonfiglio (Apatow's first directing collaboration), May It Last explores the relationships between art and the artists, and how one's life interweaves with their work. When it comes to insights gleaned, Avett Brothers fans might not learn anything new. But this documentary's approach is uniquely intimate-yet-refrained — allowing the performers to expose the nakedness to their song-making. It's not eye-opening but vividly authentic, and the music-making sequences— evocative of '70s documentaries —stun. Alas, as the subtitle suggests, it's merely a portrait.

4. Funny People (2009)

With his third feature, Funny People, Judd Apatow dived deep into Hollywood, making something more observant and unreserved than anything else he's done before OR since. It follows George Simmons (Adam Sandler), a once-revered comedy legend who gained great wealth as a middling movie star but lost his voice along-the-way. When he's diagnosed with a terminal illness, the depressed comedian goes on-the-road, hoping to reconnect to what he once loved about comedy. He's also haunted by a long-lost love (Leslie Mann), whom he disconnected with while searching for fortune and fame. Unabashedly moody and heartbreaking, Funny People isn't uplifting, but that's not to suggest its title is false. It finds the humor in the tragedy, and how comedy branches from that root.

Funny People represents many of Apatow's lows and highs. As his longest film, it's the most prone to meandering; a judicious editor could cut a solid 30-40 minutes. But it's among Apatow's most mature, reflective works, exploring one's place from a humane, rewardingly layered perspective. While it didn't elevate Sandler's career (he was already A-list), Funny People instead allowed Apatow to explore a more wistful side to Sandler's persona unseen throughout Happy Madison productions. It's hard to know how much truth factors into Sandler's performance, but there's an honesty here that seems authentically sincere, showcasing once again how good Sandler is at drama. It's among his most emotionally revealing works — a refreshing change-of-pace after several half-inspired comedies.

3. The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005)

Once a burgeoning writer/producer behind several cult favorite (albeit not long-running) sitcoms, The 40-Year-Old Virgin jumpstarted Judd Apatow's exceptional Hollywood path, while also helping Steve Carell find his leading man status. In Apatow's feature directorial debut, we follow Andy (Carell), a lowly electronics store clerk who remains a virgin, even at 40. His colleagues (Paul Rudd, Seth Rogen, Gerry Bednob, Romany Malco) help Andy trade in his v-card, but it's not easy. While raunchy sex comedies were frequently found in the years (and decades) leading to its success, what separated 40-Year-Old Virgin from other R-rated comedies in this vein wasn't merely its crudely outrageously material but its unexpectedly charming sweetness.

Through our hapless protagonist and Carell's winning performance, we're given a lead who's delightfully unlike the ribald, uber-horny teenagers typically found in sex comedies. While lacking experience, Andy's age brings a (slight) maturity that's unique to this typically youth-centered genre. Carell also provides his usual humanity and likability, even during broader moments, which informed every Apatow comedy to follow. Alas, as Apatow's debut, Virgin is patchier and less polished than his later work, which says something. But its improv-heavy workplace environment invited more consistent, uproarious laughs than most movies, pushing against a sterilized PG-13 standard and inspiring more freely/frequently risqué comedies.

2. The Zen Diaries Of Garry Shandling (2018)

In 2016, many Hollywood personalities were heartbroken by Garry Shandling's passing. The Emmy-winning voice behind It's Garry Shandling's Show and The Larry Sanders Show influenced several aspiring comics, including Apatow. The showrunner adopted Apatow under his wing, making him a writer-director on Larry Sanders. This mentorship informs early segments of Apatow's HBO documentary, The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling, but this two-part analysis/retrospective sees several personalities offering their memories/perspectives into this troubled mind. While this extensive documentary risks oversimplifying/over-glorifying Shandling's life and influence, it's to Apatow's credit that it's a thorough as it is without lionizing or demonizing him.

Zen Diaries is as personal/self-reflective as any Apatow film, and he uses his history/reflections with Shandling to produce a sweet, affecting portrayal of this idiosyncratic personality. Apatow's familiarity with the interviewees, likewise, allows them to open up freely, giving us a genuine warts-and-all examination of Shandling's tough-to-read internal dialogue. 

Poring through decades of diaries, we gain profound reflection, introspection, and nuance into Shandling's legacy, personality, and sense of self-worth. The results are vulnerably emotional but not too sentimental or assumptive. While it's Apatow's longest film at 259 minutes, it's surprisingly investing and rewarding, despite its intense focus on a deeply depressed, distressed individual. Its beating heart empowers— rather than detracts from —its emotional searching. Shandling influenced nearly every self-referential modern-comedy but rarely found peace. Thankfully, Apatow provides a lovely, thoughtful, soulful tribute.

1. Knocked Up (2007)

While 40-Year-Old Virgin established Apatow's ascension, it was Knocked Up, his sophomore feature, that informed his future. Ironically, this involved delving into his past. In this fresh, funny take on the rom-com format, we follow an unwitting couple— stoner slacker Ben (Seth Rogen) and career-focused Alison (Katherine Heigl) —who partake in a drunken one-night-stand that turns serious with Alison's pregnancy. Opting to keep the baby, they spend months together, finding a spark they never expected. There's a grounded realism to Knocked Up separating it from several broader, more bombastic comedies.

Like 40-Year-Old Virgin, Judd Apatow infused warm affability to his crudely funny/specifically down-to-earth stylings, creating an enjoyable blend of improvised raunchiness and winning rom-com sentimentality. Aided by Rogen and Heigl's sparkling chemistry, which found the honesty and poignancy which made these two unexpected lovers so likable, Knocked Up discovered the premise's heart and humor, particularly when focused on naturalistic moments during this nine-month time-lapse. 

This attention-to-details made Knocked Up more disheveled than other comedies. But, in this case, for the better. These moments weren't merely funny but effectively tender, giving an uncommon slice-of-life feel. Though not faultless, this formula created an immensely endearing rom-com, solidifying Apatow as a premiere filmmaker.

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Judd Apatow has been in show business for a long time. From his cult classic TV show Freaks and Geeks to his latest movie The King of Staten Island, he’s made a name for himself crafting silly comedy with real stakes and grounded dramas with clever humor. But that doesn’t mean he hasn’t taken influence from once up-and-comers, like Lena Dunham.

Judd Apatow recently broke down his career on Vanity Fair’s YouTube page. When they reached the Girls part of his resume, he said before then he’d never heard of Lena Dunham until someone gave him a DVD of Tiny Furniture, an independent film Lena Dunham wrote, directed, and starred in. Here’s what he had to say about how Lena Dunham influenced The King of Staten Island:

That’s high praise. I can definitely see a connection and kinship between Judd Apatow and Lena Dunham’s writing. For those that don’t know, Lena Dunham’s work on Tiny Furniture received glowing reviews upon its release. It eventually found its way on the prestigious Criterion Collection. She followed that up with creating HBO's Girls, which Judd Apatow was a producer on.

The King of Staten Island has plenty of the Judd Apatow trademarks. Starring Pete Davidson, it’s a story about Scott, a young man still living with his mother and struggling with the loss of his father who died in a firefighter accident. He dreams of being a tattoo artist, but never really does anything about it. The theme of heroes being lost in their life situations crosses over quite a bit between Judd Apatow and Lena Dunham’s work. What's more, the movie mirrors Davidson's real-life struggles-- a personal touch that mirrors Dunham's type of writing.

Of course, for his part, Judd Apatow has influenced other actors and filmmakers in their own work. Sometimes these things are small, like the time he had to give a funny note to actress Bel Powley on the set of The King of Staten Island.

Other times, he influences entire careers. Since Freaks and Geeks, he’s been a longtime collaborator with Jason Segel. Judd Apatow gave Jason Segel the advice that the only way he’s going to make it is if he keeps writing, which Jason Segel said changed the course of his life.

Being inspired by Lena Dunham’s writing must not be steering Judd Apatow wrong as The King of Staten Island has been receiving mostly favorable reviews from critics. It’s available now on VOD.

There is so much news to cover this week on ReelBlend, we hardly know where to begin. Things have been a little quiet over the past few weeks, as we patiently await new movies. But a string of release date changes and a massive Oscar rules change got the show rolling this week.

And things got a little heated.

First, the changes. Tenet moved back, but only by two weeks. Not too bad, especially when major theater chains like AMC and Regal revealed plans to reopen locations as of July 15 (Or earlier). After Tenet moved, Wonder Woman 1984 moved…. by several months. You can now look for it on October 2. Damn.

And that’s the tip of the iceberg with regards to date shifts, so press play on the episode and give it a listen.

We then get to the Oscar debate. The ceremony moved itself back to April, and the Academy announced changes to the qualification period, meaning movies that come out in January and February will be eligible. Jake thinks that’s terrible. Kevin thinks it makes sense. They talk it out. Sort of. You’ll hear.

This week’s interview is a great one. Having blown away by the 1950s sci-fi throwback The Vast of Night, we invited director Andrew Patterson on to discuss his process, and got fascinating insights.

The Blend game was dedicated to Judd Apatow this week. And in the reviews section, we broke down Joseph Gordon Levitt’s 7500 and Kevin Bacon’s new You Should Have Left. By the way, did you listen to our bonus episode with Left director David Koepp? It’s a good one!

Be sure to subscribe to the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts, including YouTube!

Will Ferrell has had a long career in comedy, starring in countless movies throughout the years that highlight his talent and passion. But a few of these movies stand out as fan favorites, including Step Brothers and Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. The latter movie came out in 2004, and has remained apart of pop culture with its quotable lines and iconic performances. Director Judd Apatow served the sole producer for Anchorman, and recently shared the wild original idea for the movie.

When Anchorman arrived in theaters, there was no way the movie's cast and crew would have predicted what a massive success the comedy would be. Judd Apatow helped make Adam McKay's movie into a reality as a producer, starting with the movie's wild original pitch. Apatow recently opened up about that initial concept for Anchorman, saying:

Well, that's one way of introducing Ron Burgundy to the world. Rather than being a cartoonish take on the news industry's history, it looks like Anchorman's original plot revolved around the Channel 4 News Team being stranded on a deserted island. Those circumstances definitely would have brought out some hilarious scenes from the movie's starring cast, although Judd Apatow seems happy that the vision eventually pivoted to the Anchorman we know and love.

Judd Apatow's comments come from his recent conversation with Vanity Fair about his long career in TV and film. Eventually the conversation turned to Anchorman, with Apatow revealing the movie's wild initial pitch. In the end Apatow and company pulled back the reigns, and instead told a more contained story that was full of over the top comedic beats.

Make no mistake, Anchorman wasn't actually going for any realism. There's an over the top anchorman melee fight in the streets, a jazz flute that shoots fire, a musical number about daytime sex, and Ron is somehow able to communicate with his dog Baxter. But these crazy leaps are effective because they're so out of this world, and often highlight the ridiculous ideas that America clung to in the 1970's.

Putting Ron Burgundy and his buddies on a deserted island does sound like a great idea for a sequel, given how well audiences know the characters at this point. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues didn't go that route with its plot, but who knows? Maybe an Anchorman threequel could end up happening down the line.

Judd Apatow's new movie The King of Staten Island is available on demand now. Be sure to check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Having worked in Hollywood for the last three decades, writer/director Judd Apatow knows a hell of a lot of really funny people – and that’s a fact that he regularly takes advantage of in the making of his films. Not only does he make starring vehicles for big names like Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Amy Schumer, and Adam Sandler, but his supporting casts are always filled to the brim with talented people, all of whom are given the freedom to bring their unique energies to the project. His latest, The King Of Staten Island, is no exception – and that even extends to actors in blink-and-you’ll miss it roles.

Earlier this month I had the great pleasure of doing a video chat interview with Judd Apatow and Pete Davidson, and while talking about one of my favorite scenes in the new film – the pharmacy break-in sequence – and I confirmed that the owner of the shop is an actor very familiar to comedy nerds. Check out our discussion about the great bit in The King Of Staten Island by clicking play on the video below!

SPOILER WARNING: The video and the rest of this article contains super minor spoilers for The King Of Staten Island. If you’re not looking to know too much about the new dramedy, continue at your own risk!

The King Of Staten Island scene in question here is in the second half of the film, and finds Scott (Pete Davidson) doing some shady work with his friends (Ricky Velez, Lou Wilson, Moises Arias). In hopes of financing their dreams, the group decides to try and pull off the robbery of a pharmacy, with Scott serving as the lookout. Unfortunately, things don’t go smoothly as the burglars are surprised to learn that the owner of the store is in the backroom – and while there is never a clear shot of his face, those familiar with the actor/writer may recognize the great Robert Smigel in the role.

It’s funny that Smigel – best known for his time writing for Saturday Night Live and Late Night With Conan O’Brien – would take what is really a very minor part in The King Of Staten Island, but all the same not terribly surprising. Their working relationship dates back to the late ‘00s, as the two first collaborated co-writing the script for 2008’s You Don’t Mess With The Zohan along with Adam Sandler (and we can’t even say how far their personal relationship extends before that work). This isn’t even the first time that Smigel has had a role in one of Apatow’s films, as fans will remember that he played Barry, friend of Paul Rudd’s character and a significant supporting role in This Is 40.

If you didn’t catch it, there’s also a little bonus that The King Of Staten Island fans can catch in this interview. It’s never mentioned in the film, and Robert Smigel is simply credited as “Male Pharmacy Owner,” but Judd Apatow actually gives his character a full name: Alan Moscowitz (and I’m really hoping that’s not just something he made up on the spot).

In addition to the crazy brief Robert Smigel cameo, and the aforementioned roles played by Pete Davidson, Ricky Velez, Lou Wilson, and Moises Arias, The King Of Staten Island boasts an amazing cast that includes Marisa Tomei, Bill Burr, Steve Buscemi, Bel Powley, Maude Apatow, Jimmy Tetro, Kevin Corrigan, and Pamela Adlon. The movie was released on premium VOD this past Friday, and is now available for rental and/or purchase. Check it out, and head over to our YouTube page to check out more from my interviews with Judd Apatow and the film’s stars.

Marisa Tomei has a great arc to execute in director Judd Apatow’s new dramedy The King Of Staten Island. Playing Margie, the mother of Pete Davidson’s character in what is a semi-biographical movie about the Saturday Night Live star, Tomei successfully navigates the character from introverted, doting mother to independent force of nature. It’s a great turn to see from the Academy Award-winning actor – but what makes it a touch surprising is that one of her key scenes was evidently a late addition to the film.

With The King Of Staten Island set to drop online this week, I had the wonderful pleasure of interviewing Marisa Tomei via video chat last week to talk about her character in the movie, and one thing she revealed during our conversation was that one of her best bits wasn’t originally in the script and was something that was developed later in production. Click play on the video below to watch the discussion!

In The King Of Staten Island, Margie is a woman who has kept herself mostly cut off from the world since the death of her firefighter husband – who was also the father of her two kids (Pete Davidson, Maude Apatow) – but that all changes when her son, Scott, has an unfortunate run in with a guy named Ray (Bill Burr), who ends up asking her on a date. Having been entirely focused on being a mom for nearly two full decades, she finally has the opportunity of come out of her shell a bit… and that notably means her relationship with Scott changing.

When we first meet Pete Davidson’s Scott in the movie, he is a directionless loser who lives at home merely talking about the idea of becoming a tattoo artist, but never making any real concrete steps to achieve his goals. With a new outlook on life, Margie winds up feeling compelled to give him the push out of the nest he very much needs, forcing him to move out and try to make it on his own – and this led to the inclusion of a great scene where Scott makes a desperate effort to get back inside his totally redecorated childhood home, and is aggressively shown the door by his mother. Said Tomei of the scene,

Not only is the scene a great inclusion of Marisa Tomei’s performance, as it really drives home how much her character changes over the course of The King Of Staten Island, but it also speaks to Judd Apatow’s famed style of filmmaking – which involves flying by the seat of his pants sometimes. Known for having his actors do a lot of improvisation on set, Apatow has a tendency to let his projects speak to him to a certain degree during production, and sometimes that results in great new scenes like the one that’s been highlighted here.

The King Of Staten Island, which also features Steve Buscemi, Bel Powley, Ricky Velez, Moises Arias, Lou Wilson, Kevin Corrigan, and more in addition to the names highlighted above, is available this weekend for digital rental and purchase. Check it out, and be sure to stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more from my interviews with the director and stars of the new film.

Steve Buscemi is widely regarded as one of the truly great modern character actors, best known for movies like Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, and Ghost World, but what most people don’t know about is the bravery he has exhibited during his life beyond his life as a performer. In the early 1980s, prior to his start making films and TV, he spent years working as a New York City firefighter, and on September 12, 2001 he began what turned out to be a week-long volunteer effort searching for survivors and other firefighters in the rubble of the World Trade Center.

Knowing this, it’s impossible not to respect the hell out the man – but it’s interestingly something that has never been reflected in his work. Prior to starring in Judd Apatow’s new film The King Of Staten Island, Buscemi has never actually played a firefighter character. Finding this a curiosity, I took the opportunity to ask the actor about it last week when I had the chance to interview him via video call, inquiring if it inspired any kind of hesitance on his part, and you can watch his response by clicking play on the embed below:

Like Steve Buscemi, The King Of Staten Island star/co-writer Pete Davidson also has a personal connection to the events of September 11th, as Davidson’s father was a first-responder firefighter who died on that horrible day. Having known about that story prior to becoming a part of the new movie, and also desiring the opportunity to work with Judd Apatow, Buscemi explained that there wasn’t a drop of doubt in him when he was asked to be a part of the film. Said the actor,

In the semi-biographical movie, Pete Davidson stars as Scott, a 24-year-old suffering from arrested development due to the emotional damage of losing his firefighter father when he was seven years old. His world is disturbed in a major way when his mother (Marisa Tomei) starts dating for the first time in 17 years, and making the situation even rockier is that her new boyfriend (Bill Burr) is also a firefighter. The relationship winds up leading Scott to explore the idea of following in his father’s footsteps, which is how he winds up meeting Steve Buscemi’s Papa, who is the elder statesman of the local station.

While Steve Buscemi is best known for playing squirrely criminal-types, The King Of Staten Island gave him the chance to play a role that let him draw from personal experience, and he jumped at it when it was offered. Buscemi had become acquainted with Judd Apatow in the past thanks to his frequent collaborations with Adam Sandler, and when he got a special invite to the movie’s early table read he was delighted to see the event snowball into him getting a role in the project:

We’ll have a lot more from my interviews with Judd Apatow and the stars of The King Of Staten Island for you here on CinemaBlend in the coming days, so be sure to stay tuned here on the site!

Sometimes, all it takes is the right partner to turn the creative tide of a project like The King of Staten Island. With the film garnering some pretty strongly positive reactions for Pete Davidson’s central performance, one has to wonder how different his original version would have been. This is especially true after hearing from Davidson and writer/director Judd Apatow about just what type of movie the dramedy would have been.

During the press day for The King of Staten Island, our own Eric Eisenberg was present to speak with Judd Apatow and Pete Davidson, on behalf of CinemaBlend. Curious how the semi-autobiographical film evolved into its final form, he asked both Apatow and Davidson how this process took shape. Which yielded this revelation from the SNL alum:

Left to their own devices, it sounds like Pete Davidson and Dave Sirus’ draft of The King of Staten Island could have been more of a comedic romp with touches of drama here and there. Which isn’t a bad prospect, as that’s how most of Judd Apatow’s previous films like The 40-Year-Old-Virgin, Knocked Up, and most recently Trainwreck have all played out.

But Judd Apatow, as much of a comedic genius as he is, had a very specific type of movie in mind when he applied his pen to The King of Staten Island’s reshaping. During the interview, he mentioned films like two James L. Brooks classics Terms of Endearment and Broadcast News as high water marks when it came to the type of film he wanted to replicate.

In addition to his work on The King of Staten Island’s story, Judd Apatow went into the production and editing of the film’s entirety in the following context:

You can watch Judd Apatow and Pete Davidson both tell their stories behind the making of The King of Staten Island, courtesy of the interview clip below:

It’s the type of precision and collaboration you’d expect from Judd Apatow, a man who has been known to audio record test audiences to see where the laughs happen in any given film he’s testing. Knowing the rhythm of a story like the one that Pete Davidson was trying to tell in The King of Staten Island is one of his many talents. Which makes this collaboration another example of how the right partner is never a bad idea.

The King of Staten Island makes its debut on premium VOD this Friday.

Though funnyman Pete Davidson has made a career out of getting laughs on Saturday Night Live, his latest leading role in Judd Apatow’s The King of Staten Island looks to be a bit of a dramatic change for the actor. He’s said before the story is close-to-home, since the movie is based on aspect of his life. Now, Pete Davidson recalls the sweet moment after his mom saw the movie.

For those unaware, many of the story details in The King of Staten Island are pretty similar to Pete Davidson’s own personal life, including the main character living with his mom and the loss of his father on September 11th, 2001. Now, in an interview with ET, Pete Davidson reveals the moment when his mom saw The King of Staten Island. Here’s what he said:

Pete Davidson has talked in the past about how personal The King of Staten Island is to him. He tragically lost his real-life father who was a fireman on 9/11. And, in the movie, his character, Scott, loses his father in a firefighter accident. So when he says this is a love letter to his family, he absolutely means it.

Pete Davidson’s fame has been a tricky issue with his mom. Shortly after The King of Staten Island trailer released, someone came to her front door and gave her a bag of weed and said, “I heard your son needs this.” To which, Pete Davidson adamantly asked everyone to stop doing. Hopefully, seeing The King of Staten Island made up for the issues.

The King of Staten Island was originally going to be released in theaters, but Universal shifted gears and announced it would be released directly to VOD, instead, due to global health concerns.

As a reminder, you can check out the trailer for The King of Staten Island below.

Critical reviews of the movie have released today. So far, overall it looks like its being warmly received, saying Pete Davidson gives a strong performance, but that it’s heavy on drama and light on laughs. Cinema Blend’s own Sean O’Connel gave it three out of five stars and said:

Which, considering all that, it sounds like this movie is a big jump from Pete Davidson’s usual comedy brand. Though he’s said he has no intention of leaving Saturday Night Live anytime soon, it makes you wonder if he wants to stretch his legs a bit and see what comes of it.

The King of Staten Island releases June 12th on VOD.

Judd Apatow doesn’t make the same comedy every time out, but he makes similar comedies. His pattern has crystalized over the years, showing how much the writer-director enjoys analyzing personal, romantic relationships at various stages of life. Knocked Up centered on a relationship of inconvenience, as a one-night fling attached two opposites at the hip. The seemingly semi-autobiographical This is 40 caught up with Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann (Apatow’s wife) as they wrestled with parenting, professional lives and maturing.

Apatow’s comfortable commenting on the foibles of interesting relationships, and he seems willing to learn new things about coupling as he presents them to his audiences. What does change, from film to film, is the comedian lead (or leads) that inspire Apatow. Seth Rogen’s scruffy immaturity colors Knocked Up, as Amy Schumer’s crass abrasiveness powers the comedy in Trainwreck (a comedy she wrote for Apatow to direct).

By hitching this particular wagon to Saturday Night Live player Pete Davidson, Judd Apatow finds plenty of new baggage to unpack during The King of Staten Island. Davidson’s personal tragedies provide most of the dramatic detours in King, making for a cathartic movie that might not be as funny as you’d expect.

This is more of a Pete Davidson movie than a Judd Apatow movie.

I say that because even when he has teamed up with the likes of Amy Schumer, Adam Sandler, Steve Carell or Seth Rogen, those comedians very much were working in service of a Judd Apatow movie. The King of Staten Island only exists because of Pete Davidson, and the interesting qualities that Apatow spies in the admittedly intriguing performer.

Davidson would be the first person to admit that he’s an odd fit on NBC’s sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live. The admitted stoner gets most of his laughs by exploiting his own lack of willingness to succeed at life… or even try very hard. And that lack of urgency defines Davidson’s character, Scott, in The King of Staten Island. While his younger sister (Maude Apatow) prepares to head off to college, Scott’s content to smoke pot, hang out with friends, and occupy his mother’s (Marisa Tomei) basement. Scott might have a valid excuses for this stasis. He lost his father, a firefighter who died on the job. And while he’ll joke with buddies that the loss doesn’t affect him, it’s an evident obstacle on Scott’s road forward.

In case you didn’t know, a similar thing happened to Davidson. His father, a firefighter, died in the September 11 terrorist attacks. And while the loss affected him as a child, Davidson has used his father’s death and the subsequent sorrow as fodder for his comedy. Davidson was born and raised on Staten Island. His mother, like Tomei’s character, works as a school nurse. Basically, the line that separates Pete from “Scott” seems nonexistent in The King of Staten Island.

It’s more dramatic and reflective than it is funny.

Because the character Davidson plays so closely resembles the person we (sort of) know him to be, The King of Staten Island often plays like we’ve been invited to a group therapy session where we can watch the comedian untangle his issues. And boy, does he have a lot of them. He holds mild aspirations of being a tattoo artist. His lifelong friend, Kelsey (Bel Powley) wants a relationship, but Scott’s incapable of commitment. Is Davidson a good actor, or has Apatow simply asked him to be himself? We’re never entirely certain.

One reason I’m concluding that Apatow intends King of Staten Island to be more dramatic by design is that he casts credibly funny people around Davidson, but asks them to wrestle with authentic problems, as well, instead of finding the humor in Scott’s situations. You might expect laughs when you realize the blue-collar stiff Tomei starts dating is played by stand-up legend Bill Burr. Or that Pamela Adlon appears as Burr’s ex-wife. But these comedians aren’t asked to be funny. They are still compelling, and rise to the level of the material. It just took almost the entire run-time of the movie for me to realize this isn’t a comedy, intentionally, because Davidson’s baggage deflates any true belly laughs.

It’s different enough to stay interesting.

And yet, Pete Davidson’s interesting. He maintains a career in entertainment because he’s different from what’s normally presented by the Hollywood machine, and The King of Staten Island stands apart from Apatow’s past productions because it wraps its arms around everything that Davidson has to offer.

This means detours into petty theft (during a lengthy scene, Davidson fails to play lookout while his idiot friends unsuccessfully rob a neighborhood drug store), and sidetracks into honest conversations regarding depression, mental health and honoring the memories of a deceased parent. But by shining its light on Davidson, Apatow himself leaves his California comfort zone and captures the authenticity of the truly unique borough of Staten Island. Existing in the shadow of Manhattan, Staten Island fiercely adopts an underdog identity that’s prevalent in the complications facing Apatow’s King characters. Even when he’s addressing relationship issues that he has encountered in previous films, Apatow’s able to make them appear different because he’s filtering them through the grungy lens of this offbeat environment.

Ultimately, The King of Staten Island very much ends up being the kind of movie one would make if they asked Pete Davidson a litany of questions about his life, then filmed the answers. If you don’t care, you might not connect. There’s literally an early scene at a wedding where one character tells Scott, “Your dark sense of humor doesn’t work for me.” It might not be a huge stretch for Davidson, but it’s the natural progression for Apatow, meaning you might laugh, cry, or encounter a mixture of the two.

Judd Apatow's latest directorial effort, The King of Staten Island, isn’t an autobiographical film, but that doesn’t mean it’s far removed from the life of its star, Pete Davidson. After watching the trailer, it's hard to not see the many influences the story takes from Davidson's life, an influence Davidson and Apatow purposefully use to enhance the story.

Now it’s been revealed that the non-autobiographical comedy veers fairly close to home for Pete Davidson with the tragic loss of his father. In the movie, Davidson's character has a father who was a firefighter that tragically died. As it turns out, the same happened to Pete Davidson’s father in real life, too. In a recent video, Judd Apatow shed a little more light on this sad event and how it correlates with the movie:

For a little background, The King of Staten Island is about Scott (Pete Davidson), a man living with his mother and struggling with grief after his firefighter father dies. He dreams of being a tattoo artist, but never does anything about it. Eventually he’s forced to face his grief and move forward with his life.

When the trailer for The King of Staten Island released, Pete Davidson, who does live with his mother, told Jimmy Fallon in an interview that she's has been running into problems with people stopping by to give them drugs. As it turns out, The King of Staten Island has a strong connection with Pete Davidson’s mother as well, with the SNL performer saying the following:

A few years ago, Pete Davidson took a break from being on Saturday Night Live due to mental illness. After realizing his marijuana use was making his symptoms worse, he quit pot and eventually reemerged during the show's 42nd season. Judd Apatow added that The King of Staten Island is a personal film for Pete Davidson. As he put it:

You can watch the full King of Staten Island featurette below.

Pete Davidson met Judd Apatow after Amy Schumer recommended him on the set of Trainwreck. Later, when Pete Davidson and Bill Hader hit it off on Trainwreck, Hader referred him to Lorne Michaels to be a player on Saturday Night Live. He, of course, nailed the audition and was hired.

Now Pete Davidson’s star continues to shine. He nabbed a secret role on The Suicide Squad, directed by James Gunn, and he also was cast in a role on Nathan Fillion’s The Rookie.

The King of Staten Island is set to release June 12 on VOD.

Pete Davidson, one of the youngest Saturday Night Live star in its televised history, is currently living in his mother’s basement. He’s dealt with drug problems in the past as well as suicidal thoughts, which led to him taking a short break from SNL a few years ago. But now he’s back, and his star seems to only be shining brighter.

He’s currently promoting his latest movie The King of Staten Island, written and directed by Judd Apatow, and surprise, it’s about a guy who has a drug problem living with his mom. Pete Davidson recently admitted he’s trying to quit drugs, but the recent movie trailer is making that goal harder. Here’s what he said:

Pete Davidson definitely got real during his recent appearance on the The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Because Davidson has partially built a comedy brand on drugs and is heavily leaning into that in The King of Staten Island, one can admittedly understand why some fans would be compelled to send them to him. However, let’s give the guy a break, as it's clear he doesn't want them.

Pete Davidson first connected with Judd Apatow on the set of the Amy Schumer and Bill Hader-led Trainwreck after Schumer recommended Pete Davidson when Apatow asked her who’s funny. On that note, he gave Pete Davidson a short scene in the movie.

Consequently, this quick recommendation by Amy Schumer led Bill Hader to recommend Pete Davidson to Lorne Michaels. Davidson said he couldn’t believe he could even audition for Saturday Night Live. Of course, he was hired at the age of 20, and the rest is history.

The King of Staten Island isn’t the only big ticket movie Pete Davison will be starring in. He was also cast in DC’s The Suicide Squad, directed by James Gunn. His role is being kept a secret, as of right now. And it was his role in The Suicide Squad that got him a part in Nathan Filion’s The Rookie.

The King of Staten Island is produced under Universal Studios, and it's been announced that the film will be released to directly to VOD. With this, it will follow in the footsteps of fellow recent Universal releases Trolls World Tour and The Invisible Man. It’s slated to release on June 12.

As the current climate of world events has thrown off the release strategy for many of 2020’s potential released, some films have stayed the course by getting creative. Universal Studios is one of the pioneers of that strategy, as their early VOD release of films like The Invisible Man and The Hunt, as well as the VOD debut of Trolls: World Tour have pivoted what could have been a disastrous scenario into an opportunity. Which makes the news that the hotly anticipated Judd Apatow/Pete Davidson movie The King of Staten Island will be going straight to VOD this June an even bigger deal.

In the vein of traditionally funny yet touching Apatowian comedies, The King of Staten Island is loosely based on Davidson’s own life experiences. Originally, the film was supposed to debut at this year’s South by Southwest festival, which then turned into a Tribeca Film Festival world premiere. But with both festivals cancelled, it looked like the film would be scrapped for the foreseeable future.

That changed today, as Universal officially announced that June 12th would be the release date. And with that announcement came a pretty hysterical video chat between Pete Davidson and Judd Apatow, celebrating the occasion in an Instagram post:

If there was ever an appropriate manner to announce The King of Staten Island going to VOD, it has to be Apatow and Davidson riffing over the internet, adlibbing a conversation about what they should be doing with their film. Naturally, when you’ve got comedians like these guys in front of the camera, there’s bound to be something hysterical captured by the cameras.

While this isn’t exactly what you’d call a trailer for The King of Staten Island, as there’s no footage from the actual film in play, this riff-off between the man behind such films as The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up and the SNL cast member who can be seen in next year’s The Suicide Squad probably sells the movie better than any footage ever could.

Though it wouldn’t be all that surprising if right at this very moment, an editor is putting together something that’s more indicative of what The King of Staten Island will really look like as a movie. But as we are in the “Age of Jank”, and Pete Davidson’s video call skills are undoubtedly honed by the recent decision to film SNL through similar methods, a Video On Demand release calls for a very On Demand promotion.

It’s exciting to see how the landscape of releasing has shifted with current events, and bringing The King of Staten Island to the masses a little earlier than expected should build even more buzz around this would-be hit. And maybe Pete Davidson can still get his Oscar, if the rules surrounding eligible films this year manage to take into account the circumstances 2020 has presented films far and wide.

The King of Staten Island premieres on VOD June 12th, a week earlier than its initially promised June 19th release date.

Neil Peart, the drummer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band Rush, has died. He was 67. Peart died after a three and a half year battle with the most aggressive brain cancer, Glioblastoma, on January 7. Freaks and Geeks producer Judd Apatow got emotional over the Rush drummer’s death.

The news of Neil Peart’s death hit close to home for Judd Apatow because the producer and director loved Rush’s music and it was even included on the beloved and short-lived series Freaks and Geeks. In the episode titled “I’m with the Band,” Jason Segel’s Nick Andopolis, who was himself a huge fan of Rush, plays the drums along to Rush’s “Spirit of the Radio.” A fan tweeted a clip of the inspiring and spirited scene to Apatow, and he replied with an emotional response.

It’s hard to encapsulate all that an artist meant to someone and, for Judd Apatow, the clip was likely a reminder of how affecting Rush’s music was. The clip was especially moving because Jason Segel’s character was drumming his heart out and the clip, in its own way, captured the spirit of Neil Peart.

You can watch the Freaks and Geeks clip that made Judd Apatow emotional and paid tribute to Neil Peart and Rush below. Nick Andopolis pours his heart and soul into “Spirit of the Radio” and it shows.

Through the clip alone, it’s not hard to see why Neil Peart was so beloved. The drummer was so renowned that he was even referenced in the Family Guy episode “Chick Cancer," with Chester Cheetah declaring that there’s “no fucking drummer better than Neil Peart” while listening to Rush’s “Tom Sawyer.”

Neil Peart’s death was first announced by the official Twitter account of Rush, which was comprised of Peart, Geddy Lee, and Alex Lifeson.

Neil Peart, whose last tour with Rush was in 2015, touched the lives of many and was admired for his technical proficiency and drumming talent, as well as the heart he brought onstage during live performances. The legendary drummer’s loss was felt throughout the music and acting communities.

We at CinemaBlend offer our condolences to the family and friends of Neil Peart in this difficult time.