The Bubbleis an upcoming meta-comedy fromJudd Apatowof acclaimed cult classics likeAnchorman, Bridesmaids,andthe King of Staten Island.It stars a diverse ensemble of some of Hollywood’s most in-demand talent, some talented faces we haven’t seen in a while, and some fresh and exciting artists. Audiences can look forward to seeing David Duchovny,Leslie Mann, Maria Bakalova, Peter Serafinowicz, Vir Das, Rob Delaney, Samson Kayo, Guz Khan, Nick Kocher, Ross Lee, Danielle Vitalis, and Harry Trevaldwyn, as well as Karen Gillan, Pedro Pascal, and Keegan-Michael Key.
It also promises the renowned comedic powerhouse talents of SNL’s Kate McKinnon as an eccentric producer named Paula and Fred Armisen as the existential director of the project.The Bubbleis about this hilariously matched group of actors unreservedly losing their minds in quarantine while filming an outlandish,Jurassic Parktype blockbusteraction movie calledCliff Beasts 6: the Battle for Everest: Memories of a Requiem.The title of this fake movie within a movie alone should get some kind of award!
On the flip side ofthe Bubble’s Cliff Beasts’star-studded drama are the A-listers' besotted personal assistants, production assistants, makeup and hair artists, health and safety coordinators, and crew desperately trying to navigate Hollywood insanity amongst pandemic protocols without looking their minds themselves. Here’s everything we know to expect from this wild ride!
The Bubbleuniquely continues a trend in making movies about movies. These starring actors play exaggerated versions of themselves or each other and are just all around being meta. It furthermore is one of the few projects to try and tackle life in the pandemic, something most shows and movies have avoided for the time being until public sentiment and, well, the fate of society becomes clear enough for artists to confidently dramatize what’s happened these last almost three years. Fortunately, Judd Apatow is here to wield his immense talent and unapologetic sense of humor to deliver to us one of the first snapshots of what the business of making art and staying alive was like at a specific time since Bo Burnham’sInside. Here’s what Apatow, who worked with both his daughter, Iris, and his wife, Leslie Mann, on the film, had to say toIndieWireabout the movie:
“It’s definitely a complicated world right now. Art - drama and comedy - will need to reflect it. But not all the time. Sometimes you want to talk about what’s happening, and sometimes you want to provide people with an entertaining break from all the stressful things they’re experiencing, and I assume we’ll do both.”
Clearly, we can expectThe Bubbleto take the difficult task of satirizing and harmonizing a world rattled by circumstances no one was prepared to handle.
The Over-The-Top Characters
As a young and green production assistant surveys thefamous A-list actors she’s about to start working forwith hope and excitement, beloved comedian Vir Das’s more seasoned character tells her that “she will soon learn to hate these people.” The audience is now prepped to expect a raucous, no-holds-barred trip through show business blunders. The trailer teases what can only be anticipated as an uproarious duo of Key and Duchovny as drug-induced, flakey actors on a wild ride through the demands of the fantasy film’s production, impending influenza, and various other Hollywood antics by a gaggle of uncontrollable artists.
Together, these two are on a hallucinogenic binge for much of their trailer screen time, having an incident where one of the production coordinators appears to them to be Benedict Cumberbatch, much to their dismay. The dutifully patient coordinator indulges the two by running Cumberbatch lines, such as, “Hello, I’m Doctor Strange.” It’s unclear if Cumberbatch has or will participate in this film or allowed for his likeness to be superimposed onto the shot, but it’s pretty funny either way.
Related:Here’s Every Judd Apatow Film, Ranked
The trailer also depicts a TikToking gen-z actress named Krystal Kris, played by Iris Apatow. She is publicizing all the craziness on her social media platforms through live feeds and dance videos, reducing the chaos to likes and comments-worthy content. Pascal’s Dieter Bravo, meanwhile, seems to find himself in aPulp Fiction-esque scenario, being shot in the heart with a drug antidote. One of the actors is cheered on trying to escape quarantine by fleeing across the hotel’s yard and diving over some bushes. McKinnon’s Paula has nothing helpful to provide the production coordinators with, Fred Armisen’s director figure has all he can do not to slap the nurse’s hand away each morning during mandatory test time, and Karen Gillan’s character seems to have all she can do to protect herself from the fictional dinosaurs.
Release Date
The Bubblewill release onNetflixon August 11, 2025.
This Movie Is So Meta
The Bubblepokes fun at and satirizesmany things. Firstly, it’s a Hollywood movie about show business’s perceived, or possibly somewhat real, madness. It exaggerates the stereotype of the overly eccentric and flighty actor and the performers who are merely there for the money, the popularity, or the substances to humanize an industry long considered lofty or plagued by pandemonium (pun intended).
Related:Marvel Boss Breaks Down Challenges of Filming During Covid Pandemic
It also goes after the cognitive dissonance-ridden, genuinely fearful, and dreamlike state of trying to conduct business as usual under potentially deadly conditions. This film gets how hard it is for producers, coordinators, assistants, and set artists to get the job done under normal circumstances, let alone these. It understands the trials and tribulations of playing make-believe for a living. From reacting to monsters that aren’t really there, to pulling off uninspiring source material, to justifying making a movie at all, Apatow’sThe Bubbleis all over the most nerve-wracking challenges in the industry. Most importantly, it’s not taking itself seriously. Perhaps, after all that we have been through these past few years, neither should we.
