One of the fun things about new Marvel movie releases is occasionally remembering that the people making these movies are fans, too. Sure, they are actors getting paid to wear elaborate costumes and save the world in front of green screens but, sometimes even they seem genuinely amazed by the whole thing. Apparently, Paul Rudd is no exception, as he admits seeing Chris Hemsworth wandering around as Thor on set is very cool.

Rudd recently spoke with Variety while promoting his Tribeca film Rain Reign, and the Ant-Man actor reflected on returning for the 2026 movie schedule release of Avengers: Doomsday. To that end, Rudd also discussed how it felt seeing so many familiar Marvel Cinematic Universe alums reuniting. Asked specifically what it was like getting the gang back together, he admitted that even after all these years, the experience still has not lost its novelty. As he explained:

Honestly, not just kids, how about grown men who’ve grown up on the MCU? I think I’d freak out! Because let's be real, the sprawling franchise has been around going on twenty years, and a lot of the folks who still turn out for new superhero movies have been going to see the flicks in theaters since they were very young. So, if somebody told me Chris Hemsworth was casually strolling past craft services dressed as Thor, I would probably react with the maturity of a 9-year-old.

What I love about Rudd's comments is that they cut through all the cynicism that sometimes surrounds giant IP franchises. After more than 15 years in the MCU, it would be understandable if the experience had become routine. Instead, the Clueless star sounds like somebody who still appreciates the weirdness of it all.

Maybe that's part of why Marvel has managed to work for so long. A lot of these actors genuinely seem to enjoy one another's company. Rudd specifically talked about reconnecting with performers he has worked with multiple times over the years, which makes sense considering how interconnected these movies have become.

For Rudd, that journey started with Ant-Man back in 2015. Since then, he has appeared alongside everyone from Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans to Mark Ruffalo and Hemsworth. Somewhere along the way, a comedy actor best known for Anchorman and The 40-Year-Old Virgin became one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

With Avengers: Doomsday on the horizon, bringing back familiar faces like the Fox-era X-Men from across more than two decades of comic book movies while also introducing new ones, it sounds like the behind-the-scenes atmosphere still has some of that old MCU magic. Apparently, no amount of Marvel experience can fully prepare you for casually running into the God of Thunder in the hallway.

Paul Rudd returns in the next Avengers team-up, Doomsday, this Christmas season on December 18, 2026. In the meantime, stream Rudd's appearances in the MCU movies by streaming them with a Disney+ subscription.

Paul Rudd has been part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for more than a decade now, with his character, Scott Lang, having debuted in Ant-Man back in 2015. Since then, Lang has gone from ex-con trying to reconnect with his daughter to full-blown Avenger, quantum realm survivor and one of the few heroes who can say he helped undo Thanos’ snap. Now, as Avengers: Doomsday approaches, Kevin Feige’s latest description of Ant-Man makes it pretty clear that some of the MCU’s fan-favorite heroes are entering a new age bracket.

In a new profile of Paul Rudd, The Hollywood Reporter quoted Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige, as he described where Scott Lang fits into the massive upcoming superhero movie ensemble headed for the 2026 movie schedule. According to Feige:

For longtime Marvel fans, that comment might feel like finding your very first gray hair. Ant-Man -- the goofy guy who once got fired from Baskin-Robbins -- and the dad who accidentally became one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, is now one of the older guys in the room.

It makes sense, even if it stings a little. Scott Lang has been around since Phase Two, and he has already crossed paths with Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Doctor Strange the Guardians-adjacent cosmic weirdness of the quantum realm and Kang. While Rudd looks like he never ages, his character has seen enough world-ending nonsense to earn a folding chair at the veteran heroes’ table.

That “elder statesman” label says a lot about where Avengers: Doomsday may be heading. The movie is expected to bring together multiple corners of Marvel’s current and past screen universe, with the first trailer and teasers hinting at returning MCU characters, new heroes and legacy names from the Fox-era X-Men films. Robert Downey Jr. is also returning to Marvel, though this time as the big bad, Doctor Doom, rather than Tony Stark.

Scott Lang may be getting older, but he could still serve as a connective piece between the older MCU and the newer lineup. That role fits him better than it might seem. Scott was never the team’s main strategist or strongest fighter, but he has always been one of Marvel’s most human heroes. He is a dad first, a thief second and an Avenger somewhere after “guy who really needs this plan explained twice.”

If you’re someone who’s seen all the Marvel movies in order, you know Ant-Man was introduced as the scrappy outsider looking up at icons like Steve Rogers and Tony Stark. Now, he may be the one standing across from younger heroes with the battle scars and war stories. And hey, I kind of dig that.

The funny thing about Marvel’s shared universe is that it has now been around long enough for its comic book problem to become a movie problem. These characters do not stay frozen in amber—actors age. Storylines pile up. New heroes enter. Older heroes either leave, die or retire.

For Rudd, that is especially amusing because, as I mentioned, so much of his public image has been built around the joke that he does not age. The new profile even digs into that long-running perception while Rudd jokes that he is “a withering 80-year-old man on the inside.”

Still, Feige’s description gives Doomsday an interesting emotional angle. This does not sound like Scott Lang being treated as comic relief. It sounds like Marvel understands he has history now, and he is ripe for the mentor role. The guy who once felt like the least likely Avenger may now be responsible for helping the new kids survive the next impossible fight.

Check out Ant-Man's return in Avengers: Doomsday, hitting theaters on December 18, 2026. Until then, fans can revisit his past appearances by streaming all the MCU entries with a Disney+ 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.

There’s no denying that Paul Rudd is great in a buddy comedy (see I Love You, Man, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and everybody’s favorite cringe comedy, Friendship), and Nick Jonas is obviously an appropriate choice to play a former boyband star, so right off the bat, Power Ballad seems to be hitting all the right notes. The musical dramedy is the latest from John Carney — whose work regularly explores the connections that can be made through music and songwriting — and critics are mostly charmed by the leads' chemistry and the emotions the movie evokes.

Paul Rudd stars as Rick Power, the lead singer of a wedding band who gave up his dreams of being a rock star to start a family, and Nick Jonas as Danny Wilson, a boyband veteran who’s struggling to go solo. The two form an instant musical connection, which sours after Rick realizes Danny stole a song from him that he’d been working on for years. Ian Freer of Empire gives it 4 out of 5 stars. saying the lead actors are a delight together in this big-hearted film. In his Power Ballad review, Freer writes:

Angie Han of THR agrees the chemistry between the two leads is “immediate and easy and warm.” John Carney hits every emotional note and provides an in-universe hit song that’s bound to get stuck in your head. The film — like a good pop song, Han says — is “a little bit familiar, a little bit unexpected and utterly, thrillingly satisfying.” Han’s review of Power Ballad reads:

Christian Zilko of IndieWire gives it a B, calling it a “charming” addition to John Carney’s resume, even if disbelief must be suspended for some aspects of the plot. It’s worth it for what the director gets from Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd. Zilko continues:

Power Ballad didn’t win over every critic, however. Simon Abrams of AV Club gives it a C-, saying it’s hard to tell what the movie is about, beyond its “wispy platitudes.” Paul Rudd carries the movie despite an engaged Nick Jonas, the critic says, but there’s not a lot of character development. Abrams writes:

Kristy Puchko of Mashable agrees with other critics that Power Ballad is warm and silly with a big heart that will inspire many smiles and a few laughs, but it’s a far cry from the cinematic magic that John Carney has provided in the past. Puchko concludes:

Despite some critics wanting to dig a little deeper into the complicated relationship between our main characters, Power Ballad has struck a chord with those who caught an early showing, and it will premiere in wide release with a Certified Fresh 87% on Rotten Tomatoes. Our own Sarah El-Mahmoud can attest to the positive feedback, as the movie brought out a variety of emotions when she saw it.

If you’re excited to see John Carney’s new movie or to experience Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas as musical frenemies, Power Ballad is in limited release now, going wide on Friday, June 5.

Look, we’re very much in the summer movie season on the 2026 movie release calendar, which means there are big-budget action movies and scary films galore. But sometimes we just want to go to the movie to feel big emotions, and that’s exactly what happened when I checked out Power Ballad this week.

The music-focused comedy comes from writer/director John Carney, whom I've loved following over the years. He most notably made the 2007 movie Once and a movie with Keira Knightley and Mark Ruffalo I’ve watched a ton of times called Begin Again. So, I was excited to see his latest movie starring Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas. Here are the two big emotions I felt while watching it:

I Was Shocked At The Shots It Fires At Boy Band Members

Now, I absolutely grew up loving the Jonas Brothers. When I was younger, I got all their albums and was a fan of the Camp Rock movies. As I’ve gotten older, I know that boy bands like them seem to lack a certain edge that other music acts have. So, it’s completely understandable that Paul Rudd’s character of Rick Power, a longtime rocker who settled down in Ireland, had a daughter and now fronts a wedding band, might scoff at a member of a boy band. However, this movie is sort of hilariously brutal about its commentary on boy bands... especially when members try to find their own footing outside their group.

Nick Jonas plays a former boy band member named Danny Wilson who is attending a wedding that Rick’s band happens to be playing at. Since the movie stars one of the biggest members of a boy band, I thought the movie might be soft about these types of guys, but the movie gets real real with the boy band jokes/commentary. I guess I should not be surprised given the Jonas Brothers often not taking themselves too seriously and letting the jokes fly, most recently in their Christmas movie, but still!

Nick Jonas seems nothing like the character he plays, who ends up stealing Rick’s 20-year-old song to launch his solo career. Part of me just couldn’t believe the movie exists, given the conversations that occur that must have hit home to his own life to some degree. His role had a real layered depth to it. I could feel for the guy, but man, is he a jerk in this movie, too!

The Journey Of Paul Rudd’s Character Warmed My Heart

In contrast to the shock I felt watching Power Ballad, this movie also gave me warm and fuzzy feelings. Basically, the setup is that Rick and Danny have a wild night where they bond over music, while drinking a lot, and end up jamming together. They basically both want what the other has, and Danny ends up stealing Rick’s song after he plays it for him that night. When it becomes a massive global hit, they both have to wrestle with what they wish they had from the other person.

For Rick, he’s a proud dad of a teenage girl who’s being very teen-like lately. A long time ago, when he met her mom and they decided to get married and become parents, Rick decided to give up his dream of being a rockstar. When he sees his idea become a pop sensation, he starts to think over what could have been. I won’t get into the details of what plays out during the movie, but it ends up being a super feel-good story about his life as a parent that’s going to stick with me for a while.

Power Ballad is now playing in select theaters and going wide next weekend.

Martin Short has spent decades playing lovable agents of chaos, but even by his standards, his latest real-life mishap feels almost too on-brand. During a recent interview, the comedy legend casually confessed to a wedding faux pas that nearly ruined Selena Gomez’s wedding cake. And as funny as the hijinx sounds on paper, my favorite part is the classic comment he gave Paul Rudd.

The SNL icon shared this hilarious story with his usual mix of sincerity and self-awareness on Jimmy Kimmel Live. In the clip, the Captain Ron actor recounts how what began as an innocent assumption about Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco’s reception quickly turned into a moment he now admits was…not great. According to the Three Amigos star, as his fellow OMITB costar Steve Martin began to leave the wedding, the legendary comedy performer insisted he not leave until he had a bit of cake:

The problem, as Short soon realized, was that the cake he’d confidently attacked wasn’t a spare dessert for their seating area—it was “the” wedding cake. To make matters worse, this revelation came roughly an hour before it was scheduled to be presented to the bride and groom. Faced with the gravity of his mistake, the Canadian-American star briefly considered a tactical retreat. Turning to Paul Rudd and his wife, who were seated nearby, he deadpanned:

Luckily for everyone, the chef was able to do some last-minute cosmetic repairs. When the cake eventually made its official appearance, it looked fine… mostly. Short, for his part, made it clear that his affection for Gomez — he has previously described her as “an extra child” — remains unchanged, even if his wedding guest credentials are now questionable.

The Innerspace actor recalled turning to his longtime friend, Rudd, after the damage was done and delivering what can only be described as a perfectly timed, deeply Martin Short comment. He added:

Short also revealed that he and Martin briefly conspired to keep the incident quiet. That plan didn’t last long. The Jiminy Glick talk show host added:

Fortunately, no harm was done in the long run. Gomez and Blanco were able to cut the cake as planned, and the evening carried on without further pastry-related incidents (that we know of). We are all richer for Short sharing the story with us.

Short, Martin, and Gomez currently star together in Only Murders in the Building, now streaming with a Hulu subscription. The hit series has already been renewed for a sixth season, and while a release date hasn’t been announced, a return sometime on the 2026 television schedule wouldn’t be surprising. Meanwhile, I hope we got more hilarious stories like this from the three friends.

Paul Rudd is known for being a hilarious comedian, in addition to his tenure playing Ant-Man in the MCU (which is streaming with a Disney+ subscription). Some of the best Paul Rudd movies showed off his comedic chops, although in a recent viral interview his co-star pointed out something else memorable about the actor: his penis size. And his response was pretty hilarious.

Folks who spent years watching the Marvel movies in order saw Paul Rudd get ripped, and become a sex symbol in the process. While appearing on the podcast Take Your Shoes off with Rick Glassman, the host (and his co-star from 2018's A Futile And Stupid Gesture) referenced a previous appearance on the pod. Specifically where he pretended to defecate himself, with both the stool and Rudd's crotch being blurred when he took off his pants. The host joked about this moment, saying:

This moment seemingly caught Rudd off guard, although the actor leaned into the bit, covering himself up and looking awkwardly at the camera. While he was expecting funny bits on the podcast, I doubt he expected a whole segment to be about the size of his genitals. Alas, here we are.

Glassman wasn't going to let this joke pass by easily, and kept pressing the subject matter. After asking Rudd "Do you feel like people don't know how big your penis is?", the Clueless star responded with:

Points were made, although smart money says there are fans out there who wish that Paul Rudd joined the ranks of actors who gone naked on film. He went on to make a joke about this, saying:

Talk about a niche reference. There have been plenty of full frontal scenes on film (especially in HBO shows like Euphoria, which is streaming with a HBO Max subscription), but it was The Piano that Paul Rudd name-dropped in this NSFW discussion. What a cinephile.

This conversation is sure to go viral, but hopefully it's taken as the comedic bit its intended to be. But if you look at the quotes out of context, it's definitely salacious.

Fans are looking forward to Rudd returning as Ant-Man in upcoming Marvel movies like Avengers: Doomsday, which arrives December 18t as part of the 2026 movie release list. We'll just have to see if more NSFW comments happen as he promotes that project.

Paul Rudd is a certified Hollywood star, having roles in some of the biggest film and TV franchises to date, including Friends and the MCU. Nowadays, the Golden Globe nominated actor could probably get any movie or TV role he asked for, but that wasn’t always the case, and the Ghostbusters: Afterlife actor recently told the story revealed how he completely screwed up one of his first auditions in Hollywood.

Rudd recently appeared on the New Heights podcast to promote his most recent release, a “meta” remake of the 1997 cult comedy Anaconda. Amidst discussing some of Rudd's legacy projects hitting the 2026 movie schedule, like the upcoming MCU blockbuster Avengers Doomsday, Jason Kelce wanted to know the veteran actor’s “welcome to Hollywood” moment. Turns out, Rudd’s first Hollywood reality check involves taking cue from the one and only Danny DeVito, and it did not go well for the Ant-Man actor.

Sure, maybe that’s how you get the job if you’re an established Hollywood actor, as DeVito had already been in an Oscar-winning film, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, when auditioning for Taxi. He previously shared on The Tonight Show that at the time, he had acted in a number of TV guest spots, and the Taxi casting directors were already eyeing him for the role of Louis DePalma when he came in. He fit the role perfectly with his method audition, and clearly the producers made the right decision hiring him, as his performance as the rude, yet hilarious cab dispatcher is a main reason why Taxi is considered one of the best sitcoms of all time.

Unfortunately for Paul Rudd at the time of his own soon-to-be-botched "tough guy" audition, none of those factors applied to him. Still, as a trained actor new to Hollywood, he took a swing at the legendary Danny DeVito method, and it was a big miss:

At least the Friendship actor had some self-awareness. I still can’t believe he didn’t even read any lines from the script. Even if he had stuck to the traditional audition format, I’m not sure he would have gotten the role. Don’t get me wrong, I find Paul Rudd to be a great actor with proven range past his bread and butter comedies, as evidenced by his supporting role in my favorite movie of all time, The Perks of Being A Wallflower. However, I have a hard time picturing the Ant-Man actor as an intimidating “tough guy,” especially with his age-defying baby face.

As expected, he did not get a call back on that role, but his agent did. Rudd said that after his disastrous audition for this unnamed movie, the casting director immediately called Rudd’s agent at the time to professionally tattle about his poor etiquette:

A real learning lesson indeed. If only it had worked. As it turns out, Rudd tried the method acting route again for an audition a few years after Clueless launched his acting career. Apparently, the Death of a Unicorn actor auditioned for the role of Brandt in The Big Lebowski, yet another character I cannot picture Rudd playing, and he completely embarrassed himself. The strange audition, paired with his competition being Phillip Seymor Hoffman, led to another failed attempt.

Thankfully for the This is 40 actor, the whole Hollywood movie star thing ended up working out for him. I’m sure after he tried to channel the It’s Always Sunny actor, his agent might have had some doubts, but they were probably all washed away when Clueless eventually became a ‘90’s hit, although he apparently almost blew that audition too. That poor agent, it sounds like the I Love You, Man actor made her work for her commission!

I am generally a total sucker for a meta narrative. When executed properly, I enjoy the inherent cleverness of the approach, with the work itself being used to comment on the work, and it can be a wonderful way for artists to explore and examine the creative process. From books about writing books to movies about making movies, I’m easily delighted by both the insight that can be brought to light and the parody that pokes fun at the various roadblocks involved.

That in mind, director Tom Gormican’s Anaconda should be a perfect fit for my sensibilities. The world truly doesn’t need a new sequel to the 1997 horror flick starring Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Owen Wilson and Jon Voigt, but if it’s going to happen, why not make the movie about how silly it is to make a new Anaconda movie? Having the film headlined by a pair of comedic heavyweights in Paul Rudd and Jack Black theoretically should have led to the spinning of gold. The sad truth, however, is that it’s a work that never manages to come close to living up to its potential, as it’s instead a muddled mess that is neither a successful commentary nor able to properly juggle the comedy and snake-driven horror to make it entertaining.

The movie aims to be a kind of IP-driven blend of Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder and Frank Oz’s Bowfinger, but it comes up empty in regards to having anything real to say about moviemaking and both the fun and drama are undercut by an inability to create any kind of substantial stakes.

Written by Tom Gormican and Kevin Etten, who previously brought us the “Nic Cage playing Nic Cage” comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, Anaconda’s protagonists are Griff (Paul Rudd) and Doug (Jack Black): two childhood friends who have become grown despondent in their middle-aged lives, with the former struggling to find work as an actor living in Los Angeles, and the latter finding his creative desires unsatisfied by his work as a wedding videographer in Buffalo, New York. The two men are professionally stuck, but they discover a path toward becoming unstuck when Griff delivers the news that he has managed to acquire the rights to Anaconda – a favorite film of theirs from growing up – and they decide to make a sequel.

With their friends Claire (Thandiwe Newton) and Kenny (Steve Zahn) coming along for the ride as Griff’s co-star and the cinematographer respectively, the pals fly down to the Amazon to make their movie on a shoestring budget. Things go swimmingly initially, but issues begin to stack – first when there is a violent incident that leaves the production without a snake to film, then when they become accidentally embroiled in a local illegal gold mine operation, and then when they find themselves terrorized by a monster serpent hunting them in the jungle.

Anaconda simply tries to do too much, and it doesn’t do anything particularly well.

I am a cinephile who is will always give a film its entire runtime to try and deliver something entertaining or thought provoking, but Anaconda offers wafts of trouble from its very first scene – which is set in the Amazon and introduces Ana (Daniela Melchoir), a woman in some sort of vague trouble who is is pursued by men with guns, and then said men get attacked by the titular reptile. As the tablesetter for a comedy, it doesn’t feature any jokes or laughs; it’s so cryptic as to be more confusing than intriguing; and all of the action with the snake is so fast, dark and clearly CGI that it fails to be at all scary. It’s unclear from the jump what the movie is trying to do… and that never really goes away.

There is a high concept plot buried in Anaconda about two old friends trying to reconnect and resurrect their dreams by making a movie together, but the film gets so lost in stacking up problems for the characters that nothing is able to build up to something comedically or dramatically satisfying. It has the overall cadence of a movie that was constructed on the fly, and it’s therefore way more frustrating than humorous when there is a bit where Doug explains how no modern Hollywood production starts shooting with a completed script.

The PG-13 rating hampers Anaconda in multiple ways

While the scattershot construction is the movie’s greatest flaw, one also leaves it with the feeling that it at least would have had greater potential if it had been equipped with a R-rating instead of PG-13 (which this decision was made because of the 1997 original’s rating or the kid-friendly appeal of Jack Black is unclear, but it’s a negative either way). Horror comedy works best when it gets to play in extremes, but everything here is made to feel beyond tame. It’s rather stunning that there is not a single ounce of excitement, either fear or funny-based, conjured in any of the film’s snake action – though that is also in large part because the visual effects are, to be blunt, awful.

One senses a lot of fun was had making Anaconda, but that fun doesn’t translate to the screen.

Watching the movie, it can be said that it looks like the stars had a blast making it, as you can occasionally catch Paul Rudd and Jack Black with an on-the-verge-of-breaking smirk in response to what was clearly an improvised line from their scene partner… and a weird, small piece of you feels jealous as they have more fun in the experience than the audience. Anaconda is built on a strong premise but it does absolutely nothing with it, never committing to any of its (sometimes fun) ideas and instead opting to zag off in new directions. It’s a strange thing to be disappointed by a work that never really garnered much in the way of big expectations, but that’s what it does nonetheless.

We’re living in a world of reboots and legacy sequels — which isn’t likely to change with 2026’s movie releases — but at least with Jack Black and Paul Rudd’s latest adventure, we can expect a remake that’s wildly different from the original. Anaconda centers around buddies who set out to film an amateur version of the 1997 cult classic, only to happen upon their own serpentine killer. Critics have seen the movie, and they mostly agree it’s not as much fun as it thinks it is.

Along with Paul Rudd and Jack Black, the upcoming action movie stars Steve Zahn and Thandiwe Newton, and adding to the meta-ness of it all, Ice Cube makes his return. Moviegoers’ first reactions praised it for its comedy and surprising amount of heart, but Matt Donato of IGN is definitely not a fan, giving the movie a “Bad” 4 out of 10 for making a mockery out of the beloved, perfectly cheesy 1997 original. For such an outside-the-box concept, Anaconda reads generic, with potty humor, overplayed needledrops and Tropic Thunder-esque pyrotechnics. Donato says:

William Bibbiani of The Wrap says the big-budget remake feels like it’s punching down at the actual Anaconda sequels and those who enjoy them. If you’re going to make a movie about how ridiculous the 1997 movie is, Bibbiani says, you have to actually be better than it and its sequels. Instead we get potty humor and side plots that go nowhere and aren’t fun. The critic concludes:

David Ehrlich of IndieWire rates the meta-sequel a C, calling it a “soggy first draft” that is so “shoddily made” that it completely undermines the fun that it’s meant to celebrate. Ehrlich does, however, enjoy that there are two jokes made at Jon Voight’s expense. The critic writes:

It’s not all bad, though. Liz Shannon Miller of Consequence says it’s OK for a movie to just be funny without digging too deep. The critic gives the movie a B, admitting that it’s far less scary than the original, purposely trading horror for laughs. Miller writes:

As a fan of 1997’s Anaconda, I’m pretty disappointed to read that critics aren’t enjoying this reboot. With 76 critics weighing in on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of this writing, only 50 percent have given the movie a positive score. However, there’s no denying Jack Black and Paul Rudd’s comedic potential, so if this is a title you’ve been looking forward to, don’t let the critics stop you!

Anaconda is in theaters now.

There’s just something special about 1997’s Anaconda starring Jennifer Lopez and Ice Cube, so I was definitely intrigued when it was announced that a new version was coming, especially since the remake is going in a wildly different direction. Paul Rudd and Jack Black star in the new Anaconda movie (and would it even be Anaconda without the Friday star?). Screenings have started for the upcoming action movie ahead of its Christmas Day release, and first reactions indicate we’re in some laughs --- and a surprising amount of heart.

Naturally, Jack Black and Paul Rudd are giving the Anaconda remake a comedic spin, starring as Doug and Griff, who set out for the Amazon to shoot an amateur remake of the 1997 cult classic (how meta!), only for it to turn into a fight for their own survival. Critic Simon Thompson calls it the “popcorn movie of the holiday season,” posting:

Hunter Bolding of The Hashtag Show writes that the kills are good and the snake itself is “pretty fearsome.” More from Bolding:

Cris Parker also comments on the shocking amount of genuine emotion evoked through this buddy comedy, which doesn’t take away from the laughs, because this critic says he was “wheezing”:

Mollie Damon says its 100-minute runtime goes down easy and is reminiscent of those feel-good stoner comedies of years past. Damon writes:

Taylor Gonzales says he also got throwback vibes from the Jack Black-Paul Rudd bromance, and with so many comedies going straight to streaming, Gonzales notes how good it is to see this one hit theaters, writing:

Andre Saint-Albin posts that this is the perfect holiday stress reliever with “big laughs & a bigger snake!” I love to read that the trailer apparently doesn’t spoil some “awesome surprises.” Saint-Albin continues:

Klepcx says this is how you reboot an IP, with Anaconda balancing its “unhinged” humor with a surprising softness:

Peter Gray of the AU Review is surprised as how much he liked this film, putting it in the same wheelhouse as a classic Ben Stiller satire:

It’s great to see so many positive early reactions to the Anaconda remake, because it’s risky to mess with perfection! If you’re excited to see how Paul Rudd and Jack Black play this new action/adventure horror, be sure to check out the reboot when it hits the big screen on Thursday, December 25.

Hollywood remakes and reboots are everywhere these days, so it usually takes something genuinely weird or genuinely inspired to get people to perk up. The upcoming Anaconda remake definitely qualifies as the former, but it’s also bringing back a very specific kind of old-school energy: the “crazy motherf—ker from around the way.” That’s right. Ice Cube is back, baby. And while I was already intrigued, the reason he signed on to the 2025 movie release somehow makes the whole thing even better.

Speaking with People at the Los Angeles premiere, Ice Cube said the decision to return came together fast once he understood the movie’s tone. The film isn’t looking to be a grim reboot, but instead is a project that knows exactly how ridiculous its premise is and leans into it. The "It Was a Good Day" performer explained this unique sensibility is what sold him. He revealed:

The original Anaconda was anything but subtle, but it didn’t pretend to be. Jon Voight was chewing scenery harder than the snake chewed the cast. The titular wildlife was absolutely enormous, and Ice Cube’s straight-faced turn as cameraman Danny helped keep the whole thing from sliding completely off the rails. Bringing him back nearly 30 years later feels like a movie completing a very weird circle.

That feeling clearly carried over to the new cast. Paul Rudd, who co-leads the remake alongside Jack Black, has been openly giddy about the "You Know How We Do It" artist's involvement and the blessing that came with it. In an interview with THR, he talked about Cube signing off on the project. Rudd didn’t even try to play it cool, saying:

Rudd’s quote perfectly captures the energy this reboot is conveying, based solely on the trailer. Anaconda (2025) isn’t pretending to reinvent cinema; it’s honoring a cult favorite while having fun with the idea of remaking it. The film follows Rudd and Black as lifelong friends who travel to the Amazon to remake their favorite movie, only for things to go sideways when a very real giant snake enters the picture.

The War of the Worlds star is no stranger to tongue-in-cheek nostalgia. He’s already proved he can wink at the past without disrespecting it thanks to his turns in the 21 Jump Street reboot and its sequel, both of which gleefully skewered the melodrama of the original ’80s TV series. Leaning into a self-aware remix of a cult favorite is clearly a muscle he knows how to flex. That’s why his involvement here feels less like a gimmick and more like a quiet torch pass. Ice Cube “popping up” gives longtime fans and newcomers alike permission to laugh at the absurdity while enjoying the ride.

Anaconda slithers into theaters on December 25, and if Cube’s surprise appearance delivers even half the kick he’s expecting, the remake will have already done something very right.

There are oh so many reasons to love High Fidelity – from the comedic romantic misery of John Cusack's Rob Gordon to what is one of the all-time great soundtracks – but one of its most important legacies is that it turned Jack Black into a star. While Black worked steadily during the 1990s, his scene-stealing turn as obnoxious music nerd Barry Judd in the 2000 movie turned heads in the industry and helped him become one of the biggest names in big screen comedy. What you may not know, however, is that one person who apparently played a key part in him getting the role was none other than Paul Rudd.

Black and Rudd will be featured as a true buddy pair for the first time on the big screen next month when Anaconda arrives in theaters, but their connection goes back more than a quarter of a century. In an interview with the actors in Empire, Rudd says that he auditioned to play Dick in High Fidelity, and while he didn't end up getting the gig (it went to Todd Louiso instead), he made a point of putting in a good word for his future co-star when he was talking with the film's director. The Ant-Man star explained,

It's a shame that we didn't get to see Paul Rudd and Jack Black paired up on the big screen in the years before both would become part of the Frat Pack and share credits like Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, but it's an awesome story regardless. Black is also very much aware of the impact that his friend may have had on his life via his recommendation, as he proclaimed in the interview,

In the 25 years since High Fidelity, Paul Rudd and Jack Black have put some shared credits on their resumes, but Anaconda will be the first time that their comedic energies are properly paired. In the new 2025 movie, they play a pair of best friends from childhood who decide to complete their life-long goal of remaking the 1997 thriller Anaconda starring Jennifer Lopez and Ice Cube. Things hit a major speedbump when their trained snake is accidentally killed on set, and they have to set off into the Amazon rainforest looking for a replacement.

Also starring Steve Zahn, Thandiwe Newton, and Daniela Melchior, Anaconda will be arriving in theaters on Christmas Day – and should you feel in the mood to watch/rewatch High Fidelity now, the film available for digital purchase/rental from all major online outlets and is on Blu-ray and DVD.

The horror genre has been thriving for years, leading to some of the best horror movies retuning with new sequels and reboots. That's going to happen yet again with the upcoming horror movie Anaconda, which will feature comedic its and stars Jack Black and Paul Rudd. Those two stars recently gushed about working together, and it sounds like a new Hollywood bromance is forming.

Some fans remember the 1997 Anaconda fondly, and are seemingly eager for the new one to jump start a bonafide franchise. They won't have long to wait. It will return to theaters with new meta reboot this coming December. The Anaconda trailer showed that it's leaning on meta commentary, and giving its stars the chance to show off their comedic chops. In a conversation with People, Black gassed up the Ant-Man star, saying:

How adorable is that? While Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have a notable bromance, and Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are another known Hollywood pair, it sounds like there might be another duo rising in the ranks. Because not only does Black love Rudd's comedic sensibilities, but also seems to adore him as a person. Is this movie out yet?

While nowadays Paul Rudd is known for his tenure playing Ant-Man in the MCU (streaming with a Disney+ subscription), he started off as primarily a comedic actor. He'll be able to use those skills and his experience with action in Anacodona, he also seemingly made a great friend.

Not one to be left out, Rudd also gushed about the School of Rock star, saying:

Indeed, these two actors did share a few credits prior to working on Anaconda together. They both appear in Anchorman, although Black's role is a cameo. Black and Rudd also appeared in Walk Hard together, playing Beatles icons Paul McCartney and John Lennon respectively. But their new horror/comedy allowed them to spend months time together bringing the project together.

It should be fascinating to se how audiences respond to the new Anaconda movie. The horror franchise historically weren't comedies, so this is a major departure. What's more, the fact that the movies are being referenced in this meta sequel also shows how fresh the vibes should be. Plus, I really hope we get a cameo from Jennifer Lopez herself. Is that too much to ask?

The original Anaconda is streaming on Netflix, and the new movie will arrive in theaters December 25th as part of the 2025 movie release list. We'll just have to see if this kick starts a new series of movies, allowing Jack Black and Paul Rudd to film together even more.

The Big Lebowski is considered one of the Coen brothers’ best movies, one that launched a subculture and an actual religion following its 1998 release. From its story to its blending of genres to its all-time great soundtrack, a lot is going on in the movie following “The Dude” as he gets wrapped up in a confounding conspiracy involving rugs, severed toes, and nihilists. There’s also the perfect Big Lebowski cast, headlined by Jeff Bridges and John Goodman.

However, I recently learned that Paul Rudd, who was very much an up-and-coming actor at the time, auditioned for one of The Big Lebowski’s most memorable roles, and now I want to see this audition tape. No, it’s not The Dude, Walter, or even Donnie, but instead an unforgettable (and uncomfortable) character played by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman: Brandt.

It’s Hard To Imagine Anyone Besides Philip Seymour Hoffman Playing Brandt So Well

Philip Seymour Hoffman showed up in some of the best ‘90s movies, and in a number of those cases, his characters made them even better. This was the case for Twister, Boogie Nights, and Magnolia, as was it for The Big Lebowski. Now, it’s hard to imagine anyone playing Brandt, Jeffrey “The Big” Lebowski’s awkward and uptight assistant, a.k.a. “Yes Man.”

Hoffman approached the role with the perfect balance of absurdity and earnestness, making Brandt a character that’s just so hard to read but so much fun to enjoy whenever he was on screen. From awkward encounters with Bunny Lebowski about certain favors to giving The Dude a tour of Lebowski’s estate, he had a certain je ne sais quoi that made him so fascinating, so maddening, and so ridiculous. Honestly, it’s hard picturing anyone besides Hoffman pulling that off so well.

But Based On What I’ve Heard About Paul Rudd’s Audition, It Would Have Been Wild

Though it’s hard to see anyone but Hoffman pulling off the Brandt performance so well, it turns out he wasn’t the only actor up for the part. During an appearance on the Blank Check with Griffin & David podcast, breaking down The Big Lebowski back in August 2025, Seth Rogen shared a story Paul Rudd told him about the time he auditioned for the part. This story is something:

So, what did Rudd do that made the audition one of the most humiliating experiences of his career up to that point? Rogen continued:

Honestly, I need to see this audition tape. I don’t know if Universal Pictures has it locked away somewhere or if it's part of the Coen brothers’ archive, but that video has to be one of the wildest, most ridiculous pieces of lost media. Just imagine a young Rudd (this is post Romeo + Juliet and pre The Cider House Rules) with that big Brandt smile and nervous energy.

Though Rudd didn’t get the part, Hoffman made it his own and crafted one of the best characters in the Coen brothers’ universe.

Spoilers for Season 5 of Only Murders in the Building are ahead! Read with caution, and stream new episodes every Tuesday with a Hulu subscription.

Paul Rudd’s characters on Only Murders in the Building might die, but at this point, we can almost always count on the actor returning in some way, shape or form. This season, he came back to voice the Arconia’s robot doorman L.E.S.T.R. So, while he can’t be seen in the season airing on the 2025 TV schedule, he can be heard. However, before the team landed on that idea, they floated a bunch of other ways for the actor to make his way back into the building, and co-creator John Hoffman told me about one of the wilder ideas they had.

Now, working Rudd into Season 5 of Only Murders was no easy task. Hoffman told me that “every time” they talked about it, it’d result in him saying “No, we can’t do that. We’re going to kill the show. We’re jumping the shark. It’s not going to happen.” However, that didn’t stop them from thinking up silly ideas, and the co-creator shared one of those with me. He explained:

For a bit of context, Christoph Waltz plays the billionaire Bash Steed, whose age is a mystery and whose methods of being ageless are unknown and for sure creepy. So, it’d track that he’d go to great (and silly) lengths to maintain a look that makes it seem like he could be immortal.

Considering Paul Rudd is ageless, having him return as his original Only Murders character from Season 3, Ben Glenroy, would have been hilarious. It would have been a meta commentary on the discourse surrounding his age, and it would be a funny way to incorporate him back into the show.

However, ultimately, that was a no-go, as Hoffman told me:

You know, I get it. They need to keep the story on the murders of Lester and Nicky, and this could have been a distracting subplot. However, I still would have loved to see it. Thankfully, though, they did ultimately work Rudd into the show in a hilarious, fitting and natural way that also managed to pay homage to his other appearances on the Hulu hit.

They paid homage, of course, by killing Rudd’s character again. In Season 3, Ben Glenroy was the murder victim of the season. In Season 4, his stunt double Glen Stubbins died. And in Season 5, L.E.S.T.R. was thrown off a building, effectively being killed. However, a new robot was quickly brought on, meaning Rudd was back…again.

While I adore this entire plot point and can’t wait to see Rudd’s robot on the show, I can’t help but fantasize about the wild idea the show’s creator told me about. However, if I’ve learned anything from Paul Rudd and this show, he will come back, and maybe next time it will be as Ben Glenroy, who is set on explaining his key to being ageless.

For almost 20 years (but just 8 seasons and some movies), Reno 911! has been cracking us up. The creators and core cast members, Thomas Lennon, Kerri Kenny-Silver, and Robert Ben Garant, all started on MTV's The State (along with late-season cast member Joe Lo Truglio), clearly used all their connections to bring in both up-and-coming comedians at the time (like Zach Galifianakis) and established superstars (like Kenny Rogers and Paul Reubens). Here is a list of actors who you may have forgotten played roles in the classic comedy.

Zach Galifianakis

Before he became a household name in The Hangover series, for which he delivered many of the funniest lines in the movie, Zach Galifianakis was a semi-regular contributor to Reno 911!. He played the role of Frisbee, a survivalist with a boatload of kids who lived out by the airport (and thought aliens were invading) in multiple episodes of the show in the early years.

Patton Oswalt

Comedian Patton Oswalt's career started with a slew of funny but small-ish parts in movies like Magnolia, Down Periscope, and Dodgeball. He first appeared on Reno 911! in the show's second season and went on to multiple appearances, playing multiple characters, including appearances in the two movies, Reno 911!: Miami and Reno 911! The Hunt for QAnon.

Paul Reubens

Paul Reubens really needs no introduction. As Pee-wee Herman, he became a Gen X (and all the generations after) icon. Reubens, who died in 2023, played the amazing character Rick, who headed up his own "citizens' patrol" which cracked up audiences, and annoyed the members of the Reno Sheriff's Department.

Paul Scheer

Paul Scheer has made it a habit to star in some of the funniest shows of the last 20 years. Shows like The League, Veep, and Black Monday have made Scheer a household name. HE also played multiple roles in Season 6 of Reno 911!

Natasha Leggero

Natasha Leggero's first role came in one of too-oft forgotten fake reality show Joe Schmo 2 in 2004, the follow-up to the original The Joe Schmo Show. From there, she appeared in the reality show MTV's The 70s House. Leggero parlayed that into three appearances on Reno 911! playing different characters, mostly getting arrested.

Ryan Stiles

Ryan Stiles is certainly most well-known for delivering some of the funniest lines on Whose Line Is It Anyway?, where he's been a cast member going back to the 1990s. He also popped up on Reno 911! as a police officer charged with training the idiots in the sheriff's department on how to go undercover in Season 5.

Jamie Lee Curtis

One of the most surprising cameos in the show's history came in one of the later seasons when none other than Jamie Lee Curtis appeared as Lt. Donna Fitzgibbons, a one-eyed, no-nonsense from Sparks Sheriff's department who Dangle brings in to prank the other members of the squad. She also shares Dangle's sense of fashion.

Keegan-Michael Key

One of the funniest recurring morons the Reno Sheriff's Department has to deal with is the "hypothetical criminal" played by the great Keegan-Michael Key. He appeared a bunch of times over the years as a character who comes with hypothetical crimes he definitely didn't commit. Somehow, he seems to keep getting away with the crimes.

Paul Rudd

The ageless Paul Rudd appeared in five episodes of the show in the final seasons of the original run. He played Guy Gerricault, a very unnerving Lamaze coach for Trudy while she's pregnant. He also appeared in the first movie, Reno 991: Miami as a completely different character.

Rachael Harris

After bouncing around Hollywood for about a decade, working regularly but never really starring in anything, Rachael Harris appeared in Reno 911! as Dangle's ex-wife. She's best known these days for her role as Linda in Lucifer.

Christina Applegate

Christina Applegate has an almost "blink and you'll miss it" cameo as the legendary Terry's wife. It's hard to believe Terry (Nick Swardson) would be married to anyone, especially someone who looks like Christina Applegate.

Dwayne Johnson

There isn't a bigger star on the planet than Dwayne Johnson. The Rock, as he was known in wrestling, seems to have endless energy, with movies starring him being constantly released. One such movie is the first one from this franchise, Reno 911!: Miami, where he plays a cartoonish SWAT team leader. It's a role that suits him perfectly, of course.

Ron White

Stand-up comic Ron White is one of the funniest comedians around and his character on Reno 911!, as a drunk pilot, is exactly the kind of role White was born to play. He's simply hilarious.

Charlie Day and Mary Elizabeth Ellis

Before they played Charlie and "The Waitress" in Always Sunny In Philadelphia, real-life couple Charlie Day and Mary Elizabeth Ellis played twins in a... disturbing...relationship in Reno 911!'s second season. The chemistry they are known for now was on full display in their one hilarious appearance.

Murray SawChuck

Fans of Pawn Stars will recognize Murray SawChuck (or Murray the Magician) as one of the experts Rick brings in when he needs to evaluate the value of a magic prop. He's also well-known for his stage show in Las Vegas. In his appearance on Reno 911!, SawChuck plays a magician who gets pulled over, and then pulls out a bunch of tricks, of course.

Nick Swardson

Without a doubt, the most popular recurring "criminal" on the show is Terry, played by the hilarious Nick Swardson. It's fair to say you probably haven't forgotten his unforgettable appearance across pretty much every season and movie from the franchise, but we had to include him on this list, of course.

Danny DeVito

Did you know that one of the "producers" of Reno 911! is the iconic Danny DeVito? On the show, he has appeared as himself, who is a producer of the fake show that the real show is mockumenting. How meta!

Jim Rash

Jim Rash is best known for playing the hapless Dean in the NBC sitcom Community. He's also an accomplished writer, earning an Oscar nomination for writing The Descendants, starring George Clooney and Shailene Woodley. He was one of the more "regular" recurring characters, Andrew, in the early seasons of the show, who was arrested, usually in a compromising position, a number of times. He appeared 15 times in total as the wacky character.

Michael Ian Black

Though he was never a full-time cast member of Reno 911!, Michael Ian Black, as a member of The State, is a good friend and regular cohort of many of the cast of Reno 911!. Black appeared in multiple episodes, playing multiple characters on the show, and in the movie, Reno 911!: Miami.

Ian Roberts

Ian Roberts was never part of The State, but he did cut his teeth in another legendary improv group, Upright Citizens Brigade, which he helped found with Amy Poehler, Adam McKay, and Matt Walsh. Heady stuff. He joined the regular cast of Reno 911! in the show's first final season in 2009.

Oscar Nunez

We all know Oscar Nunez from The Office and its sister show, The Paper, where his character, also named Oscar, is the lone crossover character between the shows. Before The Office, Nunez appeared in a couple of episodes in the first season as Captain Dwayne Hernandez. He appeared in a later season as "Spanish Mike" as well. He even popped up in the movie Reno 911!: Miami, as "Jose Jose Jose."

Diedrich Bader

At the same time that Reno 911! was a hit on Comedy Central in the mid-2000s, Dog the Bounty Hunter was a phenomenon on A&E. Naturally, the mockumentary about a police department had to mock the bounty hunter. Enter Diedrich Bader, famous for his roles in Office Space and The Drew Carey Show. Bader played "Tommy Hawk," modeled after the Dog (Dwyane Chapman), right down to the blonde mullet.

George Lopez

Every police department in every city has to deal with the mayor sometimes. When that mayor is a drunk, like George Lopez's character in Reno 911!, he can be maddening for the cops, but hilarious for audiences.

"Weird Al" Yankovic

"Weird Al" Yankovic has the honor that no one else on Reno 911! ever had. The legendary musician and actor got to play a person from real life. Appropriately, it was another musician, Ted Nugent. Of course, it's a completely over-the-top satirized version of the Motor City Madman, but Weird Al's look is dead on.

Seth Green

Sometimes it seems like Seth Green is literally everywhere. This was especially true in the 2000s. Whether it was shows like Robot Chicken, which he also co-created, or Entourage, or, of course, Family Guy, or movies like the Austin Powers franchise and The Italian Job, Green was great. He was also hilarious in his Reno 911! cameo as the ridiculously mean boss of two sheriffs who were undercover as fast food employees.

Rainn Wilson

If we're honest here, Rainn Wilson's appearance in Reno 911! as a murderer taking the sheriffs on a wild goose chase feels like it could almost be his character from The Office, Dwight's brother, or cousin. It's honestly one of the funniest episodes of the whole series.

Debra Wilson

Debra Wilson is probably best known as the longest-serving cast member of MadTV, which included the first 8 seasons of the classic variety show. In addition to a ton of voice work in movies and TV, she's also known for playing Oprah Winfrey in the Scary Movie franchise, and for playing Dominatrix on three episodes of Reno 911! in 2008.

Brian Posehn

Yet another stand-up who played a great recurring character on the show is Brian Posehn. Posehn played Stevie the Coroner in a few episodes in the show's original run on Comedy Central. It's a perfect character for the comic, famous for his deadpan delivery. Who doesn't want a seriously funny, but deadly serious, coroner on a show like this?

Nick Krull

Another actor who plays the absolutely perfect role for his talents is Nick Krull. Krull plays an offensive shock jock who makes his name by saying the most ridiculous things. His take on Cinco de Mayo is as funny as it is offensive.

Scott Thompson

Like others on this list, Scott Thompson is a veteran of a legendary sketch comedy troupe, The Kids In The Hall. He popped up in the show's sixth season in two episodes.

Masi Oka

Masi Oka is most famous for playing the biggest hero on Heroes, Hiro Nakamura. That role earned him an Emmy nomination. He also played a more serious role as the medical examiner, Dr. Max Bergman, in the reboot of the '60s show Hawaii Five-0. Oka got to show off his comedic chops in a couple of episodes of Reno 911! as a Japanese translator.

Jeff Foxworthy

Even some of the biggest Reno 911! fans may have missed this very brief cameo. The legendary Jeff Foxworthy. Not only was it brief, but audiences never actually saw Foxworthy in the one episode in which he appeared in the third season of the show. The "redneck" comedian played Fast Eddie McClintock, the "fastest criminal in Reno, and we only very briefly hear his voice over his CB radio as he speeds away from the sheriffs in his black Trans Am.

Warning: SPOILERS for the Only Murders in the Building episode “Tongue Tied” are ahead!

Only Murders in the Building Season 5 is halfway into its run on the 2025 TV schedule, and another character has bitten the dust. This time, though, it was hilarious, because L.E.S.T.R., the robot voiced by Paul Rudd, was thrown off the building in “Tongue Tied” by a disgruntled member of the Arcadia’s staff. Only Murders showrunner John Hoffman explained why it was a “no-brainer” to kill off L.E.S.T.R., and I’m entirely in agreement with his simple, yet logical reason.

This is the third character Rudd has played on Only Murders in the Building, having previously appeared as Ben Glenroy in the Season 2 finale and Season 3, and then as Glen Stubbins in Season 4. With two of his characters having died under unfortunate circumstances, it only made sense for Hoffman and the rest of the Hulu subscription-exclusive show’s creative team to do the same to L.E.S.T.R.. As the showrunner told TVLine:

I’m sorry, but a precedent has been set on Only Murders in the Building, so L.E.S.T.R. absolutely needed to go. It’s just a shame it happened only a week after we met it, as the robot was brought in during “Dirty Birds” to handle duties like deliveries and reminders. The only reason L.E.S.T.R. didn’t take over as the full time Arconia doorman is that Randall, the late Lester Coluca’s successor, was protected by his union, but by the time “Tongue Tied” rolled around, he and the other staff members had grown to hate the robot.

It was warranted, as many of the residents had grown to favor the robot over the humans working in the Arconia. In an attempt to make nice with the staff as they looked for clues pertaining to Lester and Nicky Caccimelio’s murders, Oliver and Mabel held a building meeting to try and resolve the growing divide between the two sides. Well, it didn’t take long for the meeting to devolve into chaos, during which time Miller the garbage man stole L.E.S.T.R. and threw it off the building.

Howard, who had been acting as L.E.S.T.R.’s keeper and called the robot his “best friend” now that his dog and cat had third-wheeled him, was shaken by that turn of events, though not for long since another robot was on its way and already connected to his Gmail. Really, the only downside of L.E.S.T.R.’s destruction was that it contained digital copies of Lester’s paperwork, which Oliver, Mabel and Charles had been hoping to use to further their investigation.

Who knows, maybe the next L.E.S.T.R. robot, which I hope is also voiced by Paul Rudd, will have those copies if they were backed up on the cloud. And at least some good came out of L.E.S.T.R. being destroyed, as Miller later gave our trio of main characters a portrait of Lester Coluca made out of the garbage from the day he died, as they’d requested. From there, they learned about an address and arrived there just in time to see Lorraine, Lester’s wife, meeting with Sofia, Nicky’s wife. We’ll learn what’s going on with that when Only Murders in the Building Season 5’s sixth episode premieres next Tuesday.

I wasn’t sure how to feel a few years ago when it was confirmed that another Anaconda movie was in the works. While I was delighted when it was revealed that Jack Black and Paul Rudd would lead the reboot, I was also a bit confused. I’ve since been waiting to see a trailer and, now, it’s finally arrived. Needless to say, both Rudd and Black seem to be at the top of their comedic game based on this footage. To be honest, though, I’m actually really eager to see more of one of their castmates.

The First Trailer For Anaconda Teases Big Laughs And Over-The-Top Kills

Anaconda, which is directed and co-written by Tom Gormican, centers on two friends – Doug (Jack) and Ronald (Rudd) – who are longtime fans of the original 1997 flick. Upon hitting midlife, the two finally decide to pursue their dream of making their own killer snake movie. As the trailer above reveals, the two pals don’t have the budget they desire, but they travel to the rainforest with some friends to shoot the film anyway. The production is precarious enough on its own, but it gets deadly when a massive snake enters the picture.

What this trailer teases is an incredibly meta movie that will seemingly pay homage to the snake-centered horror franchise while also carving out its own comedically bloody path. I really appreciate the slapstick elements that appear to be at play, and such material definitely lends itself to the humorously absurd plot Gormican’s film has.

As for the cast, the movie’s two leads won’t be alone, as there are some solid supporting players in the mix. There is one particular star, though, that I really have to take a moment to single out.

Let’s Talk About One Of The Supporting Actors In Anaconda

As great as Paul Rudd and Jack Black appear to be in the trailer, there’s a supporting actor that deserves attention. I’m talking about the great Steve Zahn, who’s long been putting in solid work across various genres within film and TV. That Thing You Do!, Happy, Texas, Dallas Buyers Club and War for the Planet of the Apes are just a few of best credits. I’d argue that Zahn has a tendency to steal the movies and TV shows he’s in and, based on this Anaconda trailer, I wouldn’t be surprised if he also runs away with the horror comedy.

In this killer snake romp, Zahn plays Kenny, a friend of Doug and Ronald’s who helps them make their movie. Kenny appears sporadically in the trailer, but they definitely provide a solid sense of his personality. Kenny seems to be a bit awkward (as many of Zahn’s characters are) and a bit overoptimistic, with the latter evidenced by his reaction to that meager budget. Zahn’s characters can also be quite squirrely, so I’m not surprised at all that Kenny would come up with the idea to use Doug as bait after believing him to be dead.

I have to mention, of course, that the movie also features tried-and-true stars like Thandiwe Newton, Selton Mello, Ione Skye and Daniela Melchior. All in all, what Tom Gormican and Sony have seemingly put together is a satirical horror film that gives off slight 21 Jump Street vibes. I’m eager to see Jack Black and Paul Rudd in action, but I’m also hopeful that Steve Zahn’s comedic chops are fully utilized as well.

Anaconda opens in theaters on December 25 amid the 2025 movie schedule. While waiting for the upcoming horror movie’s release, grab a Netflix subscription and stream the 1997 film of the same name.

Warning: SPOILERS for the Only Murders in the Building episode “Dirty Birds” are ahead!

Paul Rudd probably isn’t the first name who comes to mind when thinking about Only Murders in the Building, but the Hulu subscription-exclusive series has certainly gone out of its way to keep him included. First he played Ben Glenroy in the Season 2 finale and throughout Season 3, then he returned in Season 4 to play Glen Stubbins, Ben’s stunt double. While we haven’t seen Rudd’s face yet during Only Murders Season 5, not to worry, as this amazing gag continues on thanks to the latest episode to premiere on the 2025 TV schedule.

Although Randall is staying on to succeed the late Lester Coluca as the Arconia, “Dirty Birds” brought in some help in the form of the Logic-Engineered Secure Tenant Robot, or L.E.S.T.R. The robot is voiced by none other than Paul Rudd, as showrunner John Hoffman confirmed to TVLine. He went on to explain how it wasn’t the “original intention” to have Rudd voice L.E.S.T.R., but it eventually became clear that they wouldn’t be able to effectively squeeze an on-camera role for the him in Season 5 of one of the funniest shows on Hulu. Hoffman continued:

As the self-described “keeper of the building’s secrets,” Howard Morris was tasked by the Arcadia’s board with training L.E.S.T.R. to handle duties like deliveries or reminders. Randall’s job was thankfully protected by his union, but the robot’s presence is already bothering our main trio of characters. Later on in “Dirty Birds” L.E.S.T.R. spouts off impressive statistics about Althea/“Thē” and not-so-impressive statistics about the Only Murders podcast, much to Mabel and Oliver’s dismay.

Yet what’s an annoyance to them is a delight to Only Murders in the Building viewers. John Hoffman added that we’ll continue to hear Paul Rudd voicing L.E.S.T.R. for the rest of Season 5, and he got a kick out of the way the Ant-Man actor delivered his lines:

I don’t think it’s unreasonable to assume that L.E.S.T.R. will somehow factor into Mabel, Oliver and Charles solving the murders of both Lester and Nicky Caccimelio, for better or worse. I’m just glad the Only Murders team found a way to once again fit Paul Rudd into these mystery-solving antics, as unorthodox as it may be. As far as on-camera talent goes, the lineup of new guest stars this season has included Bobby Cannavale, Jermaine Fowler, Beanie Feldstein, Renée Zellweger, Christoph Waltz, Logan Lerman, Téa Leoni, Keegan Michael-Key and even Tony Plana from The Three Amigos.

New episodes of Only Murders in the Building premiere Tuesdays on Hulu. It remains to be seen if Season 6 will happen, but assuming it does, I look forward to seeing how the show makes use of Paul Rudd again… because this gag must continue.

Spoilers for Friendship lie ahead, so be aware of that as we dive into this hilarious and cringy subject matter.

The 2025 movie schedule includes some off-kilter films, but few can probably match Friendship, the A24 comedy starring Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd. Written and directed by Andrew DeYoung, the movie centers on suburban dad Craig (Robinson), who becomes friends with new neighbor Austin (Rudd). The pals’ bond and the ways in which it affects their lives might sound like a traditional premise, but in these talents' hands, it leads to some very wild moments that will make viewers feel uncomfortable.

I made it through most of the runtime myself without needing to stop the movie or watch from behind my fingers, tempting as that might have been. However, one scene is still nagging at my soul.

Friendship's Soap Punishment Scene Succeeded In Making Me Feel Truly Uncomfortable

Anyone who’s familiar with Tim Robinson’s brand of humor likely knows he specializes in cringe comedy, which centers around social awkwardness, self-deprecation and other elements. With that, his material is enough to make viewers howl with laughter and wince with everything they’ve got. (Check out Robinson’s sketch show, I Think You Should Leave, to get an idea of what I mean.) His aforementioned film with Paul Rudd is no different, and the one specific scene I just can’t get over involves soap.

In Friendship, there comes a point at which Austin invites Craig over to his house to hang out with him and some of his buddies. Craig initially has trouble fitting in, but he eventually manages to find some common ground with the gang. However, the night takes an unfortunate turn during a jovial boxing session in the garage, at which point Craig sucker punches Austin. That’s awkward enough, but everything gets extremely uncomfortable when Craig begins to punish himself by chewing on a bar of soap in a matter-of-fact-way.

The sight of Craig seeking to get back into Austin and co.’s good graces while keeping a whole bar of soap in his mouth is just too wild. Oddly enough, many of the scenes that preceded the soap moment and those that came later didn’t bother me as much. What’s really ironic, though, is that the notion of a guy putting a whole bar of soap in his mouth is so simple, yet it’s also so strange.

Put plainly, this soap scene is easily one of the weirdest moments I’ve ever seen in a movie. And that's crazy to say, given that Friendship has many more off-the-wall elements.

Viewers Should Brace Themselves For Friendship, Whether They’ve Seen It Before Or Not

As I told a co-worker, it’s very hard to prepare one’s self for the pure cringe that is Friendship, and it doesn't matter how many times a person has seen it. Seriously, there are some scenes in this movie that’ll make you squirm out of second-hand embarrassment. Craig’s impromptu visit to Austin’s job and Craig’s meltdown at his job are just a few prime examples. And don’t get me started on the last 10 minutes of the film (which I won’t discuss in detail here).

This wickedly dark and funny comedy from Andrew DeYoung isn’t for the faint of heart. However, I applaud DeYoung for managing to craft a movie that succeeds in its mission to make viewers feel uneasy. Not only that, but as crazy as the soap scene and others are, Tim Robinson plays them to perfection, and his performance alone makes the film worth a screening. Just be warned that however ready you think you are for it, the movie will still get you.

Friendship is now streamable with an HBO Max subscription, and anyone who’s bold enough to want more cringe after that can use that same membership to stream Tim Robinson’s The Chair Company, which premieres on October 12 amid the 2025 TV schedule. Also, read up on upcoming A24 films.

The movie’s been out for a while now, but let’s go ahead and start with a SPOILER WARNING for anyone who still hasn’t watched Friendship, now available to stream via HBO Max subscription.

No small feat for any 2025 movie release, Andrew DeYoung’s Friendship pulls off the rare move of utilizing a main star’s genre-specific talents in a completely different capacity. I speak of course of cringe-comedy mastermind Tim Robinson going from I Think You Should Leave’s shortform chaos to a full-length Fatal Attraction-esque feature without ever pivoting away from what he does best. His bizarro performance is so convincing, however, that I can’t tell if I truly understood the hard-to-watch movie or not.

Not that Friendship hinges on a hyper-dense puzzlebox of a plotline, and it actually follows a pretty classic set-up of “Guy Meets Other Guy, Guy Quickly Blows Up Potential Friendship With Other Guy, Guy Ruins Own Life In Process.” But while I don’t necessarily question all of the key story beats, I do wonder how many others viewers shared my initial takeaway. So grab your tastiest bar of soap and let’s get into it.

My Take: Most Of What We See In Friendship Is From Craig's Unreliable Perspective

Though Friendship doesn't feature any narration voiceover from Craig, it's safe to say the entire movie centers around him. In the sense that viewers don't partake in any extended sequences focusing solely on other characters when Craig isn't in the immediate vicinity. For instance, we never see what happens to Kate Mara's Tami in the sewers. We don't see Paul Rudd's Austin hanging only with his "real" friends. We don't spend time with the son and his gal pal at school. Et cetera.

Early on when Craig just comes across as a kindly oddball, it's not hard to buy into the innate realism of those scenes. However, after his fast-forming fascination with Austin takes hold, Craig's life and behavior skew wildly erratic in hilariously awkward ways that push the bounds of believability, even within such a blatantly fictional capacity. As such, I started thinking around the midway point of the movie that all of the ups and downs we're seeing in Craig's life are being filtered through his exaggerated psyche, and that the events would be completely different from Austin or Tami's perspective.

I'm fully aware that Rudd, Mara and other cast members intentionally performed scenes as if they were in more a straightforward drama, which obviously plays a big part in creating the tonal imbalance. But I don't think that speaks entirely to why I question Friendship's reality.

Certain Scenes (And Austin's Final Wink) Only Make Sense To Me If Friendship Isn't 100% Objective

While I can allow that not every detail in this movie has to be explained from end to end and make perfect sense, the fact that so many surreal things happened keeps me from buying into just how real it all is. Details and moments like the ones below are inexplicable to me without a P.O.V. twist.

• Austin's Phone

After Craig's first phone disaster while out picking mushrooms, Austin tells him that he doesn't have a phone. Yet later, when Craig shows up out of the blue at the news station, Austin pulls out a phone and is incredulous when Craig questions why he has it, and then that's never talked about again.

It's possible Austin was just lying to sound cool by saying he didn't have one. But I think Craig just heard what he wanted to in that moment to reflect his own phone-related opinions.

• The Aftermath Of Craig Breaking In And Stealing Austin's Gun

I don't question the legitimacy of Craig walking blissfully around his neighbors' house without a clue. However, the only consequence came when the police and Austin showed up at his door and...did essentially nothing but yell and ask questions, all while Craig successfully talked himself out of trouble. Which is, I'd argue, the most suspicious thing that happens in this movie. Considering how wrong things go for Craig at every given turn, it's hard for me to think this would be his big win.

As well, despite Austin being so hot under the collar in that moment, he's right back to being passively uncomfortable with Craig soon afterward, without ever accusing him again or ever bringing up the golden gun that was stolen. I don't even think Austin addressed it being his gun whenever Craig brandished it during the final act.

• Tami And Devon

Josh Segarra rules at playing kind-hearted characters, and this movie is no exception. But I'm not entirely clear on whether or not his character Devon was as uncomfortably close with Tami as the movie made it seem. While not stated directly, I think we're meant to believe that Craig and Tami are selling their house when the movie starts off as part of an eventual split, and that Robinson isn't being as honest with himself as he should be about it.

With that in mind, it's perhaps not so unbelievable that Devon showed up at her post-disappearance party and said all the right things, and that Tami eventually moved into his poolhouse. But I still think that was one of the Tami-related details skewed by Craig's heightened reality.

I'm also fairly positive that Tami said way more about being missing in the sewers, but that all Craig came with from it was that she finally had an orgasm. I don't think that Tami is that shallow.

• Austin's Final Wink

At no point after realizing how uncentered Craig is should Austin have done anything to prolong his neighbor's destructive fascination. Especially after he was the one who actually tried to stop Craig during the living room fiasco, and almost got himself shot with his own stolen gun. Keeping the others from seeing Austin's bald head wouldn't be enough to make that happen, either.

Because I also think Austin would have noticed his hairpiece falling off, and that it wouldn't have required Craig's input for him to realize it. So I don't even know if I believe that actually happened.

After being cuffed and put into the cop car, Craig immediately imagines that first hangout night going way better than it actually did, which is immediately followed by Austin turning around and giving a wink that injects Craig with surprised happiness. In my mind, showing audiences that fantasy was a nod to Craig's idealized visions, and having it coincide with the "reality" of Austin's wink was a sign that nothing was 100% certifiably real.

Yet I'm Still Not Entirely Sure If Understood Or Misread Craig's Story

After watching Friendship, I did what many othes do and talked to others who'd watched, and poked around online for Andrew DeYoung interviews and others' views on the movie. I wasn't comprehensive in that search, so I freely admit to not seeing everything there was to see. Still, in all the commentary I did sift through, I didn't see many thought-out opinions that matched up with my own, and only saw a smaller amount of social media comments that posited Craig as being an unreliable narrator.

So I may have just missed the holy grail of an article/interview where it's confirmed beyond a shadow of a doubt that Friendship's plotline veered hyperbolic due to being from Craig's perspective. But until I see that with my eyeballs, I'm just going to keep wondering whether I actually got this movie or not.

Let me know whether or not you agree with me in the poll below.

Paul Rudd boasts a pretty impressive resume, as he’s been part of some of the best movies of ‘90s and the 2000s, but one of his most notable TV roles has got to be Mike Hannigan on Friends. The actor has said that he felt so “strange” being included in the series finale that he cracked a bad joke that upset the cast. However, after hearing the full story, I’m surprised he wasn’t fired on his first day on set.

Friends fans were introduced to Mike Hannigan — the fan-favorite side character who would eventually marry Lisa Kudrow’s Phoebe — in Season 9, and over the course of the final two seasons, Paul Rudd reprised the role in 16 episodes. That includes the Season 10 series finale, “The Last One,” and the actor later told The Graham Norton Show it “made no sense to me whatsoever” that he was included. Feeling like a bit of a seventh wheel, Rudd said he decided to make a joke out of it. In his words:

I mean, it’s a good joke — Paul Rudd pretending that after joining so late in its run he had much of anything to do with the show already considered one of the best sitcoms of all time. However, with Jennifer Aniston — who Rudd had co-starred with in 1998’s The Object of My Affection — and the rest of the cast sobbing during the Friends finale, I guess they weren’t in a place to receive such humor.

However, there’s more to the story — it turns out the ill-timed joke wasn’t the worst stunt Paul Rudd pulled on the set of Friends. Apparently he had a run-in (literally) with Jennifer Aniston on his first day, and I’m actually surprised he was allowed to stick around. The actor said (via Buzzfeed):

This is probably the worst case scenario for someone on their first day of work. Paul Rudd said it’s obvious Jennifer Aniston was in pain as producers, writers and other crew around them rushed to her aid. Rudd continued:

Inauspicious indeed. Luckily for the actor, the writers must have known how vital Mike would be in Phoebe’s life, because Paul Rudd was able to keep his job. In fact, Mike’s role in giving Lisa Kudrow’s character a happy ending is precisely why the EPs have said it was important to include him in the series finale.

It sounds like quite a journey Paul Rudd went on with Friends — and Jennifer Aniston specifically. She must not have held too much of a grudge, though — for the foot injury or the bad joke — because the two went on to work together again, co-starring in Wanderlust in 2012.

If you want to relive some of Paul Rudd’s possibly less cringey moments as Mike Hannigan, all 10 seasons of Friends can be streamed with an HBO Max subscription.

A24’s Death Of A Unicorn has been on my list ever since it showed up on the 2025 movie release calendar, but it was one of those titles that I missed in theaters. Since it recently became available to stream on HBO Max, I finally checked it out, and I actually have a lot to say about Paul Rudd’s character. Elliot Kintner is one of the most unruly and unhinged protagonists I’ve seen in a while, and I need to unpack his crimes. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of SPOILERS ahead!

I Feel Like Death Of A Unicorn Wants To Be An Endearing Father-Daughter Movie, But It Is Not That

Look, I’m all for nuanced characters, but Death of a Unicorn didn’t exactly check those boxes for me, especially considering the relationship at the center of the twisted horror-comedy. Now, I’d read CinemaBlend’s 4-star Death of a Unicorn review and some meddling critic thoughts about the Jenna Ortega movie, but nothing prepared me for the odd experience of the film itself.

The movie starts off with Rudd and Ortega’s characters of Elliot and Ridley heading over to the Canadian Rockies to visit the estate of Elliot’s boss, but in its inciting moment of conflict, the dad character runs over a unicorn and then proceeds to beat it up?!! Why? I have absolutely no idea. He then decides to store the poor thing in his SUV and take it with them to the estate, so that he can bury it later or something like that? However, what happens instead is he successfully angers the baby unicorn's family, and his bosses decide to bleed it dry after they figure out unicorns have mystical healing powers.

At the same time, Death of a Unicorn is attempting to weave in a plotline about the dad/daughter who seem like they’ve been going through a rough patch since the death of Elliot’s wife and Ridley’s mom. That’s all well and good, but there’s a difference between having a flawed dad who doesn’t know what to do with a unicorn and the straight-up psychopath Rudd ends up playing here.

I'm Sorry But There’s No Way I’m Forgiving Paul Rudd’s Character In Death Of A Unicorn

Elliot proceeds to completely ignore his daughter, who is being completely fair and logical over the idea to perhaps not torture this poor animal further, and he’s more worried about finding stability in his career. Look, I know that being a single dad is hard, but later in the movie, he proceeds to stab and kill Will Poulter’s character, who was very much a highlight of the movie as the son of his boss. And, that's definitely not an action that's going to help with that objective...

The movie ends with Elliot and Ridley being hauled away by the police and probably going to jail, but they are all laughs and giggles about the whole thing. The end seems to suggest the unicorns are going to save them, but that makes zero sense, considering Elliot is the one who started this unicorn war to begin with. I honestly would have been more satisfied if Ridley had gotten very far away from her father.

Anyways, I needed to vent about this bonkers movie! While I guess I appreciate Rudd going against type, his character just felt like it only existed to cause chaos, and I wasn’t here for it.

Over the years, I’ve watched Wet Hot American Summer more times than I can count. Seriously, it has to be dozens of times between random bits on cable or multiple screenings with my wife over the years. I recently went back and rewatched the iconic summer camp movie about the final day of Camp Firewood’s 1981 season, and there are so many random thoughts I can’t get out of my head.

From the absurdity of David Wain’s semi-autobiographical R-rated comedy to the outrageously talented cast to the fact that Paul Rudd hasn’t aged since 2001, there’s a lot to unpack here.

It's Crazy How Many Of The Actors Became Massive Stars

Watching Wet Hot American Summer in 2025 is a wild experience, and not just because this movie is straight-up bonkers. I mean, just look at the cast. You’ve got everyone from The State who’ve gone on to find success, but also Bradley Cooper and Amy Poehler are in the mix, both of whom have become top A-listers since the film’s release.

Andy Killed At Least Four Kids, Right?

Paul Rudd’s Andy is probably the most non-Paul Rudd character the actor has ever given us. Not only is he sassy, sulky, annoying, and flaky, but he also killed at least four kids – two from drowning and two by throwing them out of a van at a high rate of speed. Dude is a menace!

The 'Going Into Town' Scene Is The Gift That Keeps On Giving

Whenever I go back to watch Wet Hot American Summer, the scene I always look forward to the most is the “Going Into Town” sequence. It starts off harmless enough, but quickly devolves into a manic, depressing, and incredibly dark few minutes.

'It's Always Fun To Get Away From Camp, Even For An Hour' Kills Me

One thing I love about the “Town” sequence is when the counselors come back from robbing old ladies, stealing sixers, and joining a Trainspotting situation, it’s revealed they were only gone for an hour.

I Still Can't Figure Out How Old The Counselors Are Supposed To Be

I’m not talking about the Wet Hot American Summer: First Day at Camp miniseries years after the movie’s release, where the cast didn’t care how old they looked. This is more of an honest question. Are the counselors adults? Teenagers? Both? It’s all over the place here.

Wet Hot American Summer Takes All The Best Camp Movie Tropes And Mashes Them Together For A Gonzo Experience

Wet Hot American Summer takes movies like Meatballs, Ernest Goes to Camp, and countless others, combines them, and spits out some gonzo amalgamation of those classics. It’s off-kilter, and that’s what makes it so weird and fun.

I Still Don't Understand How Henry And The Nerdy Kids Were Going To Change Skylab's Path, But I'll Allow It

Alan Shemper (Michael Showalter) with his standup routine at the Camp Talent Show is great in Wet Hot American Summer, but it’s the response from the campers and counselors that makes it so ridiculous. The exaggerated laughter just gets crazier and crazier as his routine continues.

I Still Don't Understand How Henry And The Nerdy Kids Change Skylab's Path, But I'll Allow It

There are so many random subplots in Wet Hot American Summer, and one of the most bonkers is the one involving ASSOCIATE Professor Henry Newman (David Hyde Pierce) and a group of nerds trying to prevent a piece of Skylab from falling on the camp. I don’t get it, and I think that’s the point.

But Was That Steve Who Saved The Day With His Weather Manipulation?

Henry and company might have had a hand in saving the camp, but I totally think it was Steve (Kevin Sussman) and his wind manipulation that stopped the piece of space junk from falling on the talent show.

'You Taste Like A Burger' Is The Most Ridiculous Way Of Breaking Up With Someone

Andy and Lindsay (Elizabeth Banks) have a budding romance in Wet Hot American Summer until the annoying counselor tells his make-out buddy that she tastes like a burger before calling things off. Ice cold!

I Can't Get Over The Fact That Chris Meloni Was In Wet Hot American Summer, Law & Order SVU, and Oz At The Same Time

At a single point in the early 21st century, Christopher Meloni was playing Gene the cook in Wet Hot American Summer, Chris Keller on Oz, and Elliot Stabler on Law & Order: SVU. I have nothing to add; this is just wild to think about.

Victor's Arc Is Both Hilarious And Heartbreaking, But Mostly Hilarious

Ken Marino’s Victor in Wet Hot American Summer has perhaps the film’s most over-the-top, hilarious, and heartbreaking arc, especially after going from thinking he was going to hook up with a girl to wrecking a van to running back to camp to nearly dying in the woods to finding said girl with another guy. At least he has great hair.

I Love The Fact That The "9, 9:30" Reunion Joke Paid Off 16 Years Later In The Netflix Series

There’s a great scene where the counselors talk about getting back together 10 years later, which they do in the 2017 Netflix miniseries, where they do the greatest thing ever by acknowledging the joke from long ago.

Paul Rudd Playing A Sassy Teenager Is Just Too Good Here

Paul Rudd’s Andy isn’t the most likable character. Heck, he’s not even Rudd’s best role. However, the Clueless actor perfectly pulled off the sassy, arrogant, and rude teenager better than just about anyone else.

Beth Waiting 10 Seconds To Meet Henry At The Picnic Table Is Such A Great Yet Overlooked Moment

Anyone who knows me knows that I love a good time-based bit, and Wet Hot American Summer features an all-time great when Henry tells Beth (Janeane Garofalo) to wait around 10 seconds before walking over to him. And she does. It’s silly, it’s unnecessary, and it’s hilarious.

Seriously, The Number Of Kids In Peril Here Is Wild

Kids driving motorboats, kids getting thrown out of cars, kids almost getting crushed by space junk, the movie has it all… including a group of kids on a river trip by themselves that ends with them going over a cliff.

The Motorcycle Chase Scene Is Just Too Much, And I Love It

Neil (Joe Lo Truglio) chasing Victor on a motorcycle after his fellow counselor abandoned him and a van of campers is just too much. The tonal shift of the film, the visual of a man outrunning a motorcycle with little to no effort, tand he obstacles that prove to be too much for Neil. All of it is wonderfully absurd.

The Deconstruction Of The 'Unlikely Team Of Misfits' Trope Is Top-Notch Comedy

Just when you think Wet Hot American Summer is going to take a cue from the great kids sports movies with its “unlikely team of misfits” speech, the movie throws the trope out the window, and the big game with a rival camp is called off at the last minute.

Coop Storming Off, Getting Caught In A Bucket, Slipping On A Banana Peel, And Landing In A Pool Is Peak Physical Comedy

The physical comedy in this movie is top-notch, and that’s especially true in the scene where an upset Coop gets caught in a bucket, slips on a banana peel, and then lands in a small pool is peak form.

Can We Talk About That Training Montage?

There are so many great movies with intense training scenes, and I feel weird including Wet Hot American Summer. However, that’s very much the case here with the random montage of Gene turning Coop from a teenager into a man. It’s just great!

The Talking Can Of Mixed Vegetables Scene Is So Random, But It Makes Sense In A Movie Like This

The incredible H. Jon Benjamin voicing a can of mixed vegetables in Wet Hot American Summer is one of the oddest things I’ve seen in a movie. I know, his backstory is explained in the 2015 Netflix series, but spending the better part of two decades not knowing if this was real or not was quite an experience.

Ben And McKinley's Wedding Scene Is Hilarious But Also Poignant

Ben (Bradley Cooper) and McKinley’s (Michael Ian Black) wedding is both hilarious (Amy Poehler’s flute playing) and poignant, and is handled in a meaningful and purposeful way. No notes.

The Number Of Times My Wife And I Watched This Movie When We First Started Dating Is Shocking

Back when Wet Hot American Summer was a staple on Netflix, my wife and I would watch it all the time. I’ve honestly lost count of how many times we’ve gone back to Camp Firewood over the years. Not so much now with the three kids, but back in our younger days, it was a monthly staple.

Gail Von Kleinenstein Turning Arts & Crafts Into A Therapy Session Perfectly Captures The Adult Experience

Molly Shannon’s Gail Von Kleinenstein turning her arts & crafts hour into an unorthodox and mortally questionable therapy session is honestly one of the quirks about this movie that makes it so great. Yeah, there are some ethical questions to answer, but let’s not think about those.

Arty Solomon Could Very Well Be My Favorite Character

The first time I watched Wet Hot American Summer, I thought Arty Solomon was just your normal radio-obsessed camper. However, he’s anything but. Over the years, the stinky camper who refuses to bathe or live in our reality (his microphone isn’t plugged in) has become my favorite character.

Beth And Henry Looking At Highly Specific Sections In The Library Is Too Good

The budding romance between Beth and Henry is one of the charms of Wet Hot American Summer and a subplot I love to revisit from time to time. What I love about it is the way in which it takes what could be a very straightforward love affair but turns the wonkiness up a bit. One of the best moments in this romance comes when they are both at the library at the same time (not knowing it, though), looking at very specific sections – Beth is looking at astrophysics (which isn’t that odd) while Henry glances over books on being a camp director.

I Didn't Realize Henry And Niles From Frasier Were Played By The Same Actor For Nearly A Quarter-Century

Hi, it’s me, I’m the guy who didn’t know that Niles from Frasier and Henry from Wet Hot American Summer were played by the same guy until 2025. Carry on…

My Summer Camp Was Nowhere As Fun As Camp Firewood, And I Think I Missed Out

I went to an overnight camp in central Louisiana for a few years when I was younger, and things were never as crazy as they were in Wet Hot American Summer. Sure, the counselors were up to no good at times, but we didn’t have a boat, or river trips, or talking cans of veggies. I feel like I was missing out.

Katie's Big Turn On Coop At The End Is Something

The whole movie, it feels like Katie (Marguerite Moreau) has a thing for Coop, and that they’ll eventually end up together before the movie ends. While that is partially true, the love of Coop’s young life informs him at the last second that she just wants to be friends before riding off with Andy in some random guy’s car. Brutal!

Susie's Meltdown About The Talent Show Is Some Of Amy Poehler's Best Work

Susie, the director and choreographer of the musical at the talent show, is one of the most outrageous characters in Wet Hot American Summer, especially when it comes to the production she’s putting on with Ben. Her meltdown when she suspects Beth is trying to sabotage her project is so out of left field. Honestly, it’s some of her best work, which is saying something.

The Search For Victor Is So Chaotic, So Random, And So Awesome

The scene near the end of the movie, where Beth and Neil go insane looking for Victor so he can save the campers from going over a cliff, is nuts. They run wild all over the camp, not listening to anyone or reason, and it creates a chaotic cap on an already wild movie.

I Remember Watching This Movie As A Kid And Just Not Getting It

I first watched Wet Hot American Summer when I was like 13 years old, and I remember just not getting it at the time. Years later, it’s one of my favorite movies.

If you’ve been watching the Marvel movies in order or tracking the upcoming Marvel movies, you know the cinematic universe delivers on big battles and layered storytelling. However, some of its best moments are the quiet ones. Case in point: a simple magic trick that began as a joke in Ant-Man and the Wasp and evolved into a mini character arc. Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang learns close-up magic, and Randall Park’s Jimmy Woo takes that trick and makes it his own across multiple appearances.

This little MCU continuity gem was highlighted by the Instagram user @UnitedEgo, which shared a fan-cut video montage, which you can watch embedded below, connecting the dots. The post in question revolves around the sleight-of-hand magic trick that's performed by both Scott Lang and Jimmy Woo across different Marvel Cinematic Universe projects. Check it out:

Let’s rewind. In Ant-Man and the Wasp (streamable with a Disney+ subscription), Jimmy Woo is tasked with checking up on Scott Lang, who’s under house arrest. Scott, ever the creative dad, has been teaching himself close-up magic to pass the time. He casually shows off a trick, leaving Jimmy both skeptical and secretly impressed. His reaction? A baffled “how’d you do that?” followed by some clear curiosity.

Flash forward to Jimmy's return in WandaVision, during which he flips out a business card like a pro magician when introducing himself to Monica Rambeau. It’s a quick moment but, if you’ve been following his character arc, it’s also a deeply satisfying one. He didn’t just learn magic offscreen for no reason. It’s a full-circle moment rooted in a character beat from years earlier.

In interviews, Randall Park has spoken about how challenging it was to learn the card flip and how rewarding it was to film it. He recalled that while filming Ant-Man and the Wasp, a real magician was on set teaching Paul Rudd the tricks. Park admitted he was genuinely intrigued and thought it’d be cool to learn someday. I'm not sure if Park expected that “someday” would come full circle in WandaVision, where he’d get to show off his own magical chops in a character-defining callback.

These little threads are what make the MCU more than just a collection of new and upcoming superhero movies. They turn even the smallest background moments into long-running character development. It’s MCU storytelling at its sneakiest and sweetest. What's also great is that the trick even comes back into play during a brief lunch scene between Scott and Jimmy in 2023's Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Jimmy Woo mastering a magic trick over multiple appearances may not shift the multiverse, but it’s a quiet nod to continuity, character growth, and, let’s be honest, Paul Rudd’s underrated role as a mentor in the most unexpected ways. Also, can we all just admit that Woo is an MCU character who needs more screen time? Where was his director’s chair in the five and ½ hour-long Avengers: Doomsday cast reveal?

The next MCU movie headed to the big screen is Fantastic Four: First Steps, which is set to hit theaters on July 25 as part of the 2025 movie release schedule.

As a massive fan of all things Tim Robinson, a long-time supporter of Paul Rudd’s contributions to pop culture, and someone who gets down with the best A24 movies, I made sure I saw Friendship as soon as humanly possible. I had a feeling that this would either be the funniest comedy on the 2025 movie schedule or the most uncomfortable experience of the year. Little did I know both would be true, and this movie would bring on an existential crisis that I’ve still not quite escaped.

I loved Friendship, but at the same time, I don’t like the way it made me feel – in the theater, on the drive home that night, or pretty much every day since then. Few movies have this effect on me – I think I can count them on one hand – and even fewer get my stamp of approval despite making me feel so down, so confused, and so on edge. Yeah, I’ve got to talk about it…

Don’t worry, nothing not already spoiled in the various Friendship trailers will be talked about here.

First Off, Friendship Is One Of My Favorite Movies Of The Year

I know we’re not even halfway through the year, but Friendship is one of my favorite movies of 2025, and without a doubt, the funniest comedy I’ve watched in a long time. I’ll get into the cringey awkwardness and psychological thriller aspects a little later, but first, I have to talk about the way writer/director Andrew DeYoung and stars Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd created a unique experience that I’m sure people will be talking about for years, if not decades, to come.

Whether it’s Robinson’s character, Craig Waterman, talking about the new “Marvel,” a hilarious reference to the latest movies on the MCU timeline, Paul Rudd’s Austin Carmichael being charismatic, or the relatability of a blossoming friendship, so much works with this movie. I laughed, I winced, and I laughed while wincing on more than one occasion.

But The Movie Made Me SO Uncomfortable

When I came home from my screening of Friendship, my wife asked me to describe it to her, and the best thing I could come up with was this: “Take What About Bob?, add in a dash of I Love You, Man, substitute the warmth and bright colors with melting snow and beige tones, and top it off with the most awkward moments from I Think You Should Leave.” All of this is to say that Friendship is hilarious, but it’s also a movie that made me SO uncomfortable in the theater. Here’s the thing, I think that’s the point.

There were moments in my screening when people were laughing and then there were times when they were laughing from being so uncomfortable. You know what kind of laugh I’m talking about here? That “I’m not sure if I should chuckle or put my head down so I’m going to laugh to not feel bad” kind of laughter filled the theater a few times. And I was right there with everybody; hoping, wishing the abuse would stop.

The Whole Idea Of The Movie Hit A Nerve, And It Took Days To Shake It

Every now and then, a movie comes around and hits a nerve, making you think about your life in silent contemplation for hours, days, and maybe even weeks. Well, I didn’t have a Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd movie bringing on an existential crisis on my 2025 bingo card, yet here I am. The feeling of awkward discomfort in the theater was bad enough while watching Friendship, but what was even crazier was that it didn’t go away when I left the screening and started driving home. In fact, it only got more intense from there.

The whole idea of the movie – a man attempts to build a meaningful relationship with a new friend, only to mess it up and go on a journey of self-discovery – really got to me and made me think about just how hard it is to make friendships work the older we get. As someone who has struggled with this over the years, the experience led to a lot of soul-searching, which I didn’t expect. The feeling has begun to pass, but I did not like the way it made me feel.

Don't Get Me Wrong, Friendship Has Some Of Tim Robinson And Paul Rudd's Best Stuff

As I mentioned earlier, this is one of the best movies I’ve seen all year, and a unique comedic tour de force that we’ll be talking about for a long time. I would go so far as to say it’s some of Paul Rudd’s best stuff (still not as wild as his recurring prank on Conan O’Brien) and a movie that could take Robinson to the next level in his career. I mean, Robinson has come a long way from his short stint on Saturday Night Live, and Friendship only seems like a natural progression of his signature form of comedy.

The range shown off by these two comedic actors (not to mention the supporting cast that includes Kate Mara and Jack Dylan Grazer) is off the charts, and the chemistry (in both good times and bad) is so believable, so genuine, and relatable. Not quite standard comedy but not quite fully dramatic either, these two performances are in this weird, awkward space in the middle that allows their skills to shine.

I Haven't Related To A Character Like This In Ages, And I Don't Know How I Feel About It

But I have to tell you, I found myself relating to Robinson’s Craig Waterman way more than I expected and way more than I want to admit. I’m sure this is the case with a lot of people who watched the movie, but I saw all of my worst qualities come out in that character. My jealousy, my anxieties, my uncanny ability to push things way too far way too fast, they’re all there.

At times, I felt like I was watching myself in a brown winter coat (damn, I have one of those, too) losing my grasp on reality after trying too hard to be liked by those around me. Everyone has these doubts, right? RIGHT?

Though Friendship put me in a weird mood that I’m just now escaping, it’s a movie that I definitely want to watch again… when the time is right. If anything, I can’t wait to see if Andrew DeYoung has another movie added to the list of upcoming A24 movies in the very near future.

I don’t think there has ever been a more exciting time to be a fan of Conan O’Brien than now, from his recent acclaimed Oscars hosting gig to the return of his Emmy-winning travel docuseries, Conan O’Brien Must Go (now streaming with a Max subscription), to when he received this year’s Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. That star-studded event (which you can watch with a Netflix subscription) brought back some of the best bits from O’Brien’s days hosting Late Night and beyond, including one that comes courtesy of Paul Rudd.

Longtime followers of O’Brien’s career know that anytime Rudd appears publicly in the comedian’s presence, they are likely going to see a clip from a movie called Mac and Me, which the star of the new A24 movie, Friendship, has indulged in pranking the comedian with for more than two decades. If you ask me, the clip’s emergence at the Mark Twain Prize ceremony is the most brilliantly funny instance of it yet. Before I explain why, allow me to dive into the history of this iconic recurring bit.

The History Of Paul Rudd's Mac And Me Prank On Conan O'Brien

It all started in 2004 when Rudd appeared on Late Night with Conan O’Brien to promote the series finale of Friends and claimed he got his hands on a clip from the highly anticipated episode. Instead, he introduces a scene from 1988’s Mac and Me, in which the wheelchair-using human protagonist, Eric (Jade Calegory), accidentally rolls down a hill and falls into a river quarry where he is spotted by the titular alien he later befriends.

Relive the history-making moment (or witness it for the first time) below:

It would soon become tradition for Rudd to surprise O’Brien with the clip from the critically reviled E.T. ripoff, forcing him to get more creative with how he would fool the host over time, such as when the actor spent minutes on O’Brien’s podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, describing a completely fake scripted podcast he had been working on as a set-up to play an audio-only version of the clip. Sometimes, he would even re-edit the clip to reference the project he came to promote, such as one time when the MCU’s Ant-Man appeared at the end.

During the final week of episodes for O’Brien’s TBS talk show, Conan, Rudd made a surprise appearance, seeming like he wanted to introduce a clip from his and Bill Hader’s failed Saturday Night Live sketch, only to show the Mac and Me bit. He would then double down by revealing he had previously considered showing an also bizarre scene from 1999’s Baby Geniuses and proceeded to introduce that clip instead… before playing the same clip once more. I used to think that was the funniest iteration of the prank… until now.

How Rudd Managed To Surprise Conan With The Clip At The Mark Twain Prize Ceremony

When O’Brien’s former sidekick, Andy Richter, took the Kennedy Center stage at the 2025 Mark Twain Prize ceremony, he introduced a new edition of a classic Late Night bit in which O’Brien would interview still images of celebrities with their mouths replaced by an actor speaking live, who was usually Robert Smigel. This time, the mouth behind images of Bill Clinton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and James Mason was Rudd, who revealed himself after saying, as Mason, that he was introducing an AI-generated clip of the deceased actor being interviewed by O’Brien.

Of course, what we end up seeing instead is the now-famous clip from Mac and Me before cutting back to Rudd in a pre-recorded message in which he tells him it is becoming more of a challenge to surprise him with “that dumb clip.” He then delivers a genuine congratulatory speech before showing the scene a second time from what appears to be his own home theater.

I am not sure how Rudd is going to top that one. Perhaps, since some of us hoped the Mac and Me clip might appear at the 2025 Oscars, he can attempt to surprise O’Brien when he returns to host the ceremony in 2026.

​​​​Wet Hot American Summer is a goofy cult comedy classic movie stacked with (then) rising stars. Two of the cast members from the flick, Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler, reminisced about the ample amount of hang time fueled by adult beverages BTS. From sunup to sundown (and beyond), many adults of the Camp Firewood crew partied while off the clock, with one distinct exception. And the odd man out of the bunch in question is humorously fitting.

Amy Poehler recently had WHAS peer Paul Rudd join her on her podcast, Good Hang. The two covered a lot of ground, including his second title on the 2025 movie guide A24’s Friendship, along with many Rudd classics. Then there's the 2001 hit they shared. They recalled how most of their time not in character was dictated by beer runs and not prepping for future scenes. After each day was done, many gathered to drink said brews and party loudly into the night, until things shifted a bit with a late arrival. Via the podcast’s YouTube page, Poehler shared:

It’s wildly fitting that David Hyde Pierce, Fraiser’s persnickety Niles Crane, was the one to question the late-night goings-on. I can only imagine these two, along with Ken Marino, Bradley Cooper and Elizabeth Banks, or anyone who hung out, being taken aback humorously themselves.

The Ant-Man actor piped in, noting it was Pierce’s first evening on set. He mentioned the professional was likely prepping for his first scene the next morning and got interrupted by the partygoers. When the two parties met, no one formally knew the other, and a fellow cast mate broke the awkward tension with the obvious pop culture reference relating to the actor (though it was goofily skewed). The Clueless alum said:

This exchange makes me love the movie and the streaming Netflix subscription show that much more! It all screams the exacerbated drama of Camp Firewood all too well. And of course, Ken Marino’s comment is just the cherry on top of the amusing anecdote.

The podcast host jumped in to say the Fraiser actor was more curious than offended by the get-together, but it still left them all giggling like high schoolers after the fact:

Both Poehler and Rudd agreed he was a wonderful and fun collaborator to have, just a true serious actor opposed to the rest of them during the early ‘00s. I’m a bit obsessed with this brief but hilarious look behind the curtain of one of the best movies set at summer camp. But between these two, and everyone else on the call sheet who’s gone on to kill in Hollywood, it's hard not to be. For me ,at least.

As mentioned, the 56-year-old has a handful of movies coming out this year. In addition to the upcoming A24 movie, he’s already had Death of a Unicorn premiere at SXSW and will have a scheduled horror movie giant come out on December 25th–Anaconda, which is spun as a meta homage to the original of the same name. And of course, Avengers: Doomsday will release the following year.

Who knows if Paul Rudd has as much fun with these casts and crews as he did with Poehler and the gang of Wet Hot American Summer? Or if there was anyone like David Hyde Pierce who wasn’t on the same page as the partygoers? Hopefully, we’ll get those answers in twenty or so years.

I believe that Paul Rudd is one of the most versatile actors on the planet. He broke into the movie business in 1995, starring in both a classic high school comedy (Clueless) and a horror movie (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), and is now known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Ant-Man, whom he is reprising in the upcoming Marvel movie, Avengers: Doomsday. Plus, like many other professionals of his craft, he has also been known to perform in theatrical productions.

Based on his experiences in the theatre that he shared with hosts Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes on their podcast, Smartless, it appears that the artistic medium is a breeding ground for anecdotes that blow almost anything to come from “Hollyweird” out of the water. I mean, for instance, a death occurred during one of Rudd’s plays, but that is not even the most insane story that he shared on this podcast episode, as far as I am concerned.

However, it is the tale I will recall first, below…

An Audience Member Died During Paul Rudd's Performance In The Last Night Of Ballyhoo

About 40 minutes into Paul Rudd’s Smartless episode, Jason Bateman brings up how the star of the upcoming A24 movie, Friendship, has performed in the theatre many a time. However, Bateman (who co-starred with Rudd in the 2006 comedy, The Ex – read CinemaBlend’s review here) really wants to hear about anything “weird” that happened while he was onstage, which prompts him to bring up a time when an audience member passed away in the venue.

It was in the late ‘90s when Paul Rudd was originating the role of Joe in Alfred Uhry’s World War II-era period dramedy, The Last Night of Ballyhoo, during which one gentleman in the crowd, for reasons the actor does not specify, died near the end of the show. However, according to Rudd, no one seemed to notice until after the play concluded and the attendees had left their seats and made their way out of the building… save one person. Rudd himself would only be informed of what took place after the fact when the deceased had been removed from the premises.

A Person Regurgitated On The Audience From The Balcony During Paul Rudd's Performance In Grace

Paul Rudd’s recollection of the man who passed during The Last Night of Ballyhoo was actually delayed by a few minutes because he was apparently a little more eager to tell a story of a separate incident from years later. In 2012, he was starring in a play called Grace and acting in a scene opposite Academy Award nominee Michael Shannon, who was delivering a long monologue when the following took place, in Rudd’s own words:

I must say, I certainly sympathize with Shannon, who previously portrayed himself in an acclaimed A24 movie called A Different Man, in this situation. I can only imagine how frustrating it must have been to have his own signature moment of the night suddenly interrupted like that.

However, the conversation dramatically shifts when you discover what the cause of the commotion was. Rudd continues and explains what really happened here:

Now, I cannot help but feel especially sorry for the audience members who must have been frightened by Shannon's infuriated reaction, considering how they were already traumatized by being regurgitated on from above.

The Audience Caught A Sight Of Paul Rudd's Balls During The Shape Of Things

If you were assuming that Michael Shannon’s furious reaction to his monologue being interrupted by a person puking from a balcony is the highlight of Paul Rudd’s theatre memories on Smartless, think again. He tells another story, coming from when he starred in the 2001 production of Neil LaBute’s The Shape of Things (two years before starring in the film adaptation) opposite Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz, that makes even that and the story of the dead audience member seem tame.

Once again, I will let Rudd describe what took place below:

As if the embarrassing story could not be any funnier, soon after, Will Arnett cannot help but point out the hilarious irony that the audience was given a full view of Rudd’s globes during a show called The SHAPE of Things. The former Arrested Development Gob Bluth actor doubles down on his joke by adding that the production's poster should have been a close-up image of Rudd’s privates.

Rudd had one other brief, but wild, theatre story involving a person who lost control of their bowels and “went to the bathroom in the fourth row,” which the actor quickly became aware of due to its scent. He was also courteous enough to let the Smartless hosts know that this event and the audience member's death were two separate incidents.

Now, after learning about these unbelievable stories, all I can say is that I hope Paul Rudd continues to do more theatre. He seems to be a magnet for intriguing events occurring on or near the stage, and I cannot imagine anything as amusing as these happening on the set of Avengers: Doomsday, which is now in production. Then again, stranger things have happened, so we will just have to see.

These days Paul Rudd is sworn to secrecy regarding the upcoming Marvel movies he’s in but, of course, every big star’s career has a beginning. When it comes to Rudd, his earliest cinematic hit was Clueless. Today, the movie is viewed a classic and has become something of a cultural phenomenon. Amy Herkerling's film may now be viewed as a sweet '90s time capsule but, at the time, it apparently didn't boost Rudd's professional profile right away.

It’s wild to think Clueless was Paul Rudd’s first movie, but I can't imagine anyone else in the role of Josh (even if Ben Affleck and Zach Braff also auditioned for it). The movie was a sleeper hit at the box office when it hit theaters in 1995, and it actually opened second to Apollo 13 at the time. Despite that success and his iconic Nintendo commercial, Rudd says he "didn't really feel so famous" after the movie was released, and there are a few reasons for that:

Rudd shared the thoughts above during an interview with People. Given how beloved he is now, it's honestly hard to think of a Hollywood landscape in which Paul Rudd isn't a household name. The actor, who was 26 when the movie hit theaters, kept his head down and continued to work. He landed roles in movies like Halloween 6, Romeo + Juliet and Wet Hot American Summer, slowly becoming a recognizable face. As for one of the key differences between now and the time at which he was rising through the ranks, Rudd said this:

It’s true. Nowadays, when an actor appears in something, their face seemingly becomes splashed everywhere on social media, and they gain popularity quite quickly. Rudd came up in the sweet spot when the digital age was definitely emerging, but before social media had been born. If Clueless had come out in this day and age, he might have become famous at a much quicker rate.

Paul Rudd had a lot of luck on his hands when it came to the roles that fell into his lap in the ‘90s and early 2000s. During the latter stretch of time, he was also part of the final two seasons of Friends – even getting to be part of the finale despite feeling like he shouldn’t be there given all the intimate emotion happening on set that day. He played Mike Hannigan, who ended up being the man Phoebe Buffay married by the end of the show.

Few would deny the fact that Rudd is still a heartthrob, considering he was named Sexiest Man Alive in his 50s. He also continues to work consistently and, when it comes to that, he's currently avoiding Avengers: Doomsday spoilers. Here's hoping he continues to thrive -- and that he appears in that Clueless TV show that's in the works with Alicia Silverstone.

Andy Samberg and his viral digital shorts are iconic and serve as a major moment in Saturday Night Live history. Over the years, he and The Lonely Island produced hit after hit with hosts and musical guests, including national treasure Paul Rudd. Their 2000s era SNL Digital Short, “Everyone’s a Critic,” centered around a scantily clad and absurd painting of Samberg that an art crowd hated. Now, while the image has never been made public, the location of the 2008 portrait just surfaced with Rudd revealing he’s the one who kept it.

The Lonely Island created-short is a little gory and revealing (a safety warning is attached to the video), but the build-up to the haunting portrait is hilarious. On The Lonely Island podcast, the actors spoke about this wild sketch and silly Studio 8H artifact. Rudd also confirmed he's held onto the piece for all these years and shared his personal saga with it after filming wrapped:

Frankly, I’m not too shocked that the MCU actor willingly accepted the notorious nude gift. I also love that he realized by committing to the bit, he had to live with this weird piece of memorabilia from the pre-taped SNL bit.

After sharing all that, Rudd said he could reveal some of the choice details made in the painting, but he refrained and kept the description brief. He noted the full-on-Lonely-Island-material qualities of it, and said they could have it back if anyone wanted it:

Truly, the whole saga is as good as Samberg's recent reprising of 'Dick in a Box’ with Lady Gaga in my opinion. While the short is very blunt and oddball funny, it still ranks with some of the trio's best. Somehow, though, I’m more enamored with the aftermath.

As mentioned, Rudd going through life with this Samberg painting lurking in the shadows is its own meta skit. Now, I have to wonder if one of the trio will take the Death of a Unicorn actor up on his offer to get it back.

This story is also wonderful because it highlights just how far both Samberg and Rudd have come since that 2008 SNL episode, considering they both will be showing up in the 2025 movie guide. The Brooklyn Nine-Nine star is set to appear in the dark comedy, The Roses, while the Clueless actor has A24’s Friendship and the meta-esque Anaconda movie up next. Plus, we also know he'll be among the cast of Avengers: Doomsday.

However, regardless of Samberg’s or Rudd’s future endeavors, I love to know that the special but weird painting has continued to tie the two together. Now, we'll have to wait and see if its resting place changes, because that would add another hilarious wrinkle to this already funny story.

What's old is new again, and that feels like an eternal truth when it comes to the 1990s, thanks to projects like the horror-comedy Y2K The day-glo era is returning in one of its most gloriously wonderful forms yet, with Alicia Silverstone officially tapped to reprise the role of Cher Horowitz for a long-awaited TV follow-up to 1995's pop-comedy classic Clueless, simply one of the best of the decade.

Amazingly enough, this isn't just a case of a star putting their name on a knockoff for an easy payday, and Silverstone is reportedly set to both star and executive produce the new project, which is being developed through CBS Studios and Universal TV. Should it get ordered to series, would eventually stream for fans with Peacock subscriptions, but the platform is holding off on that for now.

According to Deadline, the film's writer/director Amy Heckerling and its producer Robert Lawrence are also back on board as executive producers. Spearheading the creative side will be Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, who know a thing or two about both teen-centric stories and cross-media revivals and reboots. They've worked on Gossip Girl, Dynasty, and Nancy Drew, among others, and are also behind the scenes on the upcoming Legally Blonde prequel TV show Elle, whose star was handpicked by Reese Witherspoon. Rounding out the team will be Dollface creator Jordan Weiss.

This news has be buggin' in all the most positive ways, and it immediately brings to mind some things I'd love to see in a modern-day Clueless show. I'll stick with just a couple, even as I continue pondering while waiting to hear about other returning co-stars. Speaking of...

Cher And Dionne Being BFFs With Amber Now

Tragically, one of Clueless' most irreplaceable elements is Brittany Murphy's newbie-turned-hottie Tai, with the actress having passed away back in 2009 at just 32 years old. And while I can easily imagine the creative team inventing a new adult friend for Cher (and presumably Stacey Dash's Dionne) to hang out with, but the already fabulous Elisa Donovan would be a fabulous choice to step into that third-friend spot as quasi-rival Amber Mariens.

Sure, they weren't exactly close in high school. but as it usually goes with social enemies, they shared way more in common than differences, and I can imagine that those more childish viewpoints might fade away over time. Since this is one of the most fashion-celebratory movies ever, I really just want to see Cher and Amber's clothing choices sharing the screen as often as possible.

I Would Love Flashbacks To The '90s With The Actors Still Playing Their Younger Selves

I think it would be glorious if Clueless is set in the modern day, but goes into flashback-mode to fill in a lot of the gaps from Cher's life that audiences haven't been privy to. But since we already know what all these characters looked like when they were younger, I wouldn't want to see completely different actors in those roles. Instead, in the style of PEN 15 and Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, I think Alicia Silverstone and other returning cast members should 100% just play the younger parts, too.

Would this all be a veiled attempt at making jokes about how young Paul Rudd still looks despite 30 years having passed since the movie came out? It's not not that. But that's not the whole purpose here, since Rudd was already in First Day of Camp and has played into that observation quite a bit already in more recent years. Still, it'd be great, especially if 84-year-old Dan Hedaya would be back as Cher's father.

I get another part of it would be seeing way more instantly iconic 1990s outfits on TV on a regular basis. So here's hoping the in-development series nails its costume crew.

Just to throw a last-minute request in, I'd also really want some kind of follow-up about this line from Breckin Meyers' Travis, one of Clueless' best quotes, about generational music preferences:

There are plenty of lesser-remembered '90s shows that I'd love to see a return from one day, so if Clueless does indeed get ordered up and crushes out with fans, maybe it'll usher in another wave of throwback projects.

As the 2025 movie schedule brings us ever closer to the next Avengers event in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the latest roster of Earth’s mightiest heroes are gearing up to go back into action once more. Considering that Doomsday’s massive cast list isn’t even the complete line up, that’s going to be something people are talking about as the Russo Brothers head into production for their Marvel directing return.

If the road ahead is as entertaining as Jeremy Renner’s sweet birthday message to Paul Rudd, getting the band back together may have well been worth it. The Mayor of Kingstown star took to Instagram to celebrate the Death of a Unicorn lead’s 56th birthday. Along with some throwbacks the post's caption reads:

I could be wrong, but I think we may have seen Mr. Renner make a passing reference to his friend’s previous title as People’s “Sexiest Man Alive.” Although that could just be me remembering Jenna Ortega’s roast of Paul Rudd during a recent interview. In any case, it’s still adorable to see two Avengers being a pair of friends so close that a gag like that “50 Year Old Virgins” photoshop at the top of the slideshow is even part of the conversation.

It kind of makes sense, as whenever people are talking about the lineup for the upcoming Marvel movie, Hawkeye and Ant-Man are probably two of the heroes that are unfairly clowned on. Much like those “Build a Team” memes where Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch is on the lowest tier, it’s rather unjust. And the Marvel movies and TV shows have taught us that lesson repeatedly.

That being said, Jeremy Renner and Paul Rudd are unmistakable as two of the funniest members of any Avengers team, both on and off the screen. Which makes any potential harm or damage to them an even greater emotional blow, even if you know the end result while rewatching it on your Disney+ subscription.

I mean, do you remember thinking Scott Lang had bit the big one when watching that huge explosion in Avengers: Endgame? Try watching this clip and tell me you still don't feel a little bit of dread:

We don’t know much about what lies ahead on the road to Avengers: Doomsday’s plot. That’s going to lead to a lot of speculation and worry for every name on those director’s chairs presented to tease the 2026 blockbuster’s production. But if I may suggest an alternative, especially in light of this adorable birthday exchange between friends, perhaps we can start pushing for Hawkeye and Ant-Man to become the comedy team the MCU needs.

Why not retell some of the Avengers movies in the form of Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead, and show us Paul Rudd and Jeremy Renner on a comic adventure that retells famed events from the MCU? Yes, I know that’s the plot of The Lion King 1 ½, but Tom Stoppard did it first with Shakespeare - and I think it’d be a killer use of these jokesters’ talents in-between Doomsday and Secret Wars.

We here at CinemaBlend would like to wish Paul Rudd a very happy belated birthday, and look forward to what his eternal entertainment lifespan will bring us next. Oh, and don’t believe Jon Stewart’s Daily Show running gag, no matter how funny it may be.

If you’re a big Friends fan, chances are you’d give anything to be a fly on the wall to watch the six hilarious actors at the core of the comedy finish up the series in 2004 after filming over 200 episodes across a decade. Well, Paul Rudd got to do exactly that when he was part of the finale as Phoebe Buffay’s guy, Mike Hannigan. While Rudd has spoken before about feeling odd about the choice, the creators have shared why they welcomed him for the beloved sitcom’s last episode.

When it comes to Paul Rudd having the chance to be in “The Last One” over 20 years ago, the actor likens the experience to a “Forrest Gump kind of thing” where he’s questioned why he was even welcomed to the party. But, Friends co-creator David Crane said this about bringing him along for the epic goodbye episode:

When the Friends creators spoke to The Wall Street Journal, they shared how the inclusion of Paul Rudd as Mike Hannigan in the finale was a character decision to add weight to Lisa Kudrow’s love interest in the show. As co-creator Marta Kauffman continued:

As the creators alluded to, Mike Hannigan became Phoebe’s person following Paul Rudd's character joining the show in Season 9. After season upon season where Phoebe was unlucky in love, it was really affirming to see her find love with the character before the couple got married in the final season. And in the finale episode it’s suggested the couple might be heading toward having kids like some of their other friends.

While Paul Rudd didn’t end up being part of the Friends reunion, it definitely makes sense that his character got to share in the final episode with the rest of the cast, even if it was a strange experience. Rudd has previously talked about the “surreal” time he was in during the finale and felt like he wasn’t “supposed to see” what he did as he witnessed the cast crying together and getting “all emotional.” He felt like he didn’t want to “get in the way.”

However, he was meant to be there!

Rudd is just as hilarious as his Friends co-stars too, and how awesome is it that he got to have some sweet memories with the late Matthew Perry? And funny enough, his next movie is a comedy called Friendship, but it’ll be an uncomfy A24 release with Tim Robinson.

Bringing this all back around, it was the best to see Phoebe have someone at the end of Friends, and Rudd was the best happy ending for her.

Throughout its 10-season run, Friends had quite an impressive lineup of guest stars, from George Clooney and Noah Wyle to Friends superfan Reese Witherspoon and Paul Rudd, who recurred throughout the final two seasons as Phoebe’s love interest, Mike. Now, the Ant-Man actor specifically is reflecting on his time on the NBC sitcom and what it was like working with the late Matthew Perry.

Rudd is the latest Friends guest star to speak highly about Perry, who passed away in 2023. Even despite coming onto the show towards the end, the Marvel star recalled how nice the Chandler actor was, telling WSJ that he once walked past his dressing room and he immediately wanted him to pull up a chair and play video games:

Having that moment with Perry is certainly special, and it seems like Redd cherishes the memory. It was also a pretty great way to bond, and it really shows the kind of person the late actor was. It couldn’t have been easy for the Death of a Unicorn actor to come onto Friends during its ninth season, and the 17 Again actor certainly made it a little easier. Now, he has that moment forever.

Rudd has been open about his time on Friends before, including how strange it was to be included in the series finale since he wasn’t even on the show for very long. However, he definitely made an impact on the comedy, and to this day, people will talk to him about the great sitcom. That being said, despite serving as a big character for Phoebe’s story arc, Rudd still felt a bit weird since it was such a massive time for the main actors. Regardless, it seems like the role had quite an impact on him for a number of reasons.

Meanwhile, Matthew Perry’s memory continues to live on thanks to Friends being available to those with a Max subscription and so many people recalling their favorite memories of him. His former co-star Ione Skye shared the text exchange she had when he reached out to her before his death, while Yvette Nicole Brown recalled working with him and their initially awkward dynamic. It’s been over a year since he died, but he will certainly live on forever.

Considering that Paul Rudd appeared in the final two seasons of Friends, it makes me wonder just what other special moments he’s shared with Perry or the rest of the cast. But only time will tell if he’ll give those stories up. At the very least, fans can always watch his episodes and Matthew Perry's brilliant performance as Chandler Bing on Max.

As the 2025 movie schedule continues to unfold, Paul Rudd fans have reason to be excited. Currently, Death of a Unicorn has the comedian/MCU Avenger squaring off in a darkly comic creature feature, and his upcoming picture, Friendship, seems to be just as off-kilter. So we should all be preparing for the two most popular Rudd-tastic memes to resurface on the internet: that disgustingly viral Ant-Man vs. Thanos theory from Avengers: Endgame, and the fact that the man is apparently ageless, as recently mentioned by Jon Stewart.

When it comes to The Daily Show’s Paul Rudd interview, Jon Stewart makes the claim yet again that Rudd is older than he is. But that’s something I have to apologize for debunking up front, as that claim is 100% false. Unless of course there is some sort of Endgame style time travel involved, in which case anything can happen.

Before we get to the facts though, let’s not let them get in the way of a good joke. Here now, in pictorial form, is Stewart’s favorite joke involving Paul Rudd:

That’s not even the weirdest thing to come out of this Daily Show interview, as the clip’s title on YouTube is only a slight indication of just wild it truly gets. But, for those of you who got a good laugh at Jenna Ortega roasting Paul Rudd during a recent Death of a Unicorn interview, this sort of humor is definitely up your alley.

Which will make the facts I’m about to lay out all the easier to stomach. Those still poring over Rudd’s Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire appearance may be shook to learn that the New Jersey-born star will be turning 56 on his next birthday, which is in a few weeks. The November-born Jon Stewart, on the other hand, is 62 at the time of this publication.

Depending on who you ask, seven years may not be a huge age gap. At least, that’s what you’d probably hear if half of the pair you’re comparing wasn’t Paul “Ol’ Ageless” Rudd.

On the more serious side of things, Paul Rudd’s personal health routine is an actual key to keeping the Avengers: Doomsday star in fighting shape. Which will be very handy when it comes to facing off against Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom. Though I don’t care how fit the man is, without those Pym Particles it’ll be impossible to fit in that prank-sized directors chair shown off during Doomsday’s epic cast reveal.

Jon Stewart and other media personalities know how to play up a gag, and his joke inaccurately claiming Paul Rudd is older than he proves that point rather well. By the time the massive Marvel two-parter hits over 2026 and 2027, we’ll probably see at least two more interviews where Stewart and Rudd make each other laugh. I can imagine them trading fictional birthdays and dropping other wild punchlines involving Ant-Man's powers potentially maiming evil doers at a moment's notice.

The honor of People’s Sexiest Man Alive is typically accompanied by a number of congratulations and some A+ ribbing. Previously, Brad Bitt and George Clooney shared funny takes on receiving the title in different years, while Will Ferrell is still campaigning for that magazine cover. One also can't forget about the time when Paul Rudd earned the moniker 2021. Now, though, his Death of a Unicorn co-star, Jenna Ortega, is straight-up roasting him about that.

In the 2025 movie release Death of a Unicorn, Jenna Ortega and Paul Rudd play a father and daughter who accidentally kill a unicorn with their car only to be hunted down by its parents. You'd think that Ortega would find the idea of being confronted by mythological creatures was terrifying. However, as she humorously said to eTalk CTV in a video shared to TikTok, finding out about her co-star’s Sexiest Man Alive selection was truly unsettling:

Needless to say, the usually dry-witted actress has got jokes, and I'm honestly loving it. Her sense of humor is unmatched, and it's too funny that she has no problem taking the piss out of her on-screen dad. Also, while this was surely a joke, the mere thought of the Knocked Up actor handing out multiple copies of his magazine covers to people is just too funny to me.

Still, not everyone gets to be Sexiest Man Alive, so there's a novelty to it. When the Ant-Man actor first received People’s honor, he jokingly talked about taking the mantle from Michael B. Jordan, Paul Rudd said he was gonna “own this” and get “business cards made.” So, if you got the title, flaunt it!

The seemingly ageless star also mentioned in 2021 that he expected his friends to “destroy” him for his new magazine cover. That’s what friends are for, right? Weird Al Yankovic’s response to Rudd’s honor was to share a picture of the Clueless actor dressed up as the parody singer for Halloween. Jennifer Aniston and Jeremy Renner reacted as well by sharing some A+ comments.

As Paul Rudd was present in the eTalk interview, he shared a great quip when responding to his young co-star’s shade. And it's just as self-deprecating as you'd imagine:

With that, Jenna Ortega hilariously responded by saying she has experience (via her projects) with interacting with “dark mystical creatures" and that the Ghostbusters star as one of them. (If I worked with an actor whose face looks the same in every project for decades on end, I’d probably feel the same way, too.)

If anything, what this whole interaction seems to signify is just how close Jenna Ortega and Paul Rudd have become. After all, it's said that only true friends can actually chastise each other in such a brutal manner. Jokes or not, I love this shared sense of humor between the stars, and you can check out their work in Death of a Unicorn now.

What we know about Marvel’s upcoming Avengers: Doomsday is shrouded in typical MCU secrecy. However, Paul Rudd keeps things light—even when he refuses to let the cat out of the bag. In a recent interview, the Ant-Man star got grilled about the upcoming crossover epic. True to form, Rudd didn’t give anything away, but​​ he did offer up a funny take on the now-viral cast chair reveal.

Paul Rudd played coy about the upcoming Marvel movie's top-secret details while appearing on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon. As seen in a clip shared on ’s official YouTube channel, the star leaned into signature "say nothing, smile a lot" strategy that many Marvel alums utilize. But, when pressed, he took a comedic jab at the over-the-top secrecy surrounding these blockbusters—and even slipped in a timely reference to a real-world political error:

That’s classic Rudd—playing by the rules while subtly roasting them. And, for those wondering about that “coordinated attack” line, that's seemingly a nod to a recent development involving the Trump administration. The story involved a journalist mistakenly being looped into a group chat where officials were reportedly sharing top-secret military plans via an unsecured app.

The Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania star also weighed in on the now-viral livestream of the Doomsday cast chairs that fans watched online days ago. If you missed it, the setup showed the cast's names printed on director's chairs—except one was comically miniature, labeled “Paul Rudd.” The internet quickly clocked it as a visual gag nodding to Ant-Man’s signature size-shifting abilities. Unsurprisingly, the Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy actor had a take that was a bit more self-deprecating:

The Wet Hot American Summer alum’s reaction to the viral chair moment explains why fans have such a soft spot for him. He gets the joke and always plays along—that's a true Rudd-ism. The entire interview—embedded below–is worth a watch because it's impossible not to have your pants charmed off by the never-aging Clueless star.

Fans still don’t know how Ant-Man will fit into the whole Doomsday story arc, but it’s evident that the actor who portrays him isn’t stressing over spoilers or furniture. What is known, however, is that the star will be joined by a host of other A-listers in the film, including Anthony Mackie, Chris Hemsworth, Florence Pugh, Tom Hiddleston and of course, Robert Downey Jr., who's playing Doctor Doom.

I'm eager for other developments to come down the pipeline. While we're waiting for more updates on the upcoming superhero movie—and maybe some new cast announcements if we believe Robert Downey Jr.’s latest teases—it might be the perfect time for an MCU rewatch. Just grab a Disney+ subscription, and you're all set! As for Paul Rudd, his latest project, the 2025 movie release Death of a Unicorn, has finally landed in theaters.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article gives away certain key details from the plot of Death of a Unicorn. If you have not seen the new 2025 movie yet and do not want the magic ruined for you, I recommend that you proceed with caution.

The bigger a movie studio gets, the more prolific its films’ ensembles become. That is especially evident in the latest A24 movie, Death of a Unicorn, which stars longtime A-lister Paul Rudd and recent A-lister Jenna Ortega as a father and daughter who fatally hit a mythical creature with their car. The movie also stars Will Poulter, Téa Leoni, and Academy Award nominee Richard E. Grant as a wealthy family who want to profit from the animal’s magical abilities.

Having seen writer and director Alex Scharfman’s feature debut, I can say the true stars here are the unicorns. However, among the human actors involved, there is one who particularly blew me away with what I believe is the absolute best performance in Death of a Unicorn. Allow me to explain...

Will Poulter Is Brilliantly Hilarious In Death Of A Unicorn

Many of the best Will Poulter movies and TV shows have proven that the actor has the masterful ability to switch between playing nice and playing really, really bad on a dime. He has even demonstrated this duality within the same movie, namely when Adam Warlock (a role he would be interested in revisiting in the MCU) is introduced as a villain in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 before becoming an ally. Well, in Death of a Unicorn, he portrays Shepard Leopold as a total amoral baddie, but to an irresistibly comical degree.

Poulter does an incredible job as the son of a wealthy pharmaceutical company CEO, portraying the most spoiled, arrogant, and even delusional aspects of his personality in a manner that can prove maddening but never irritating, due to his skilled authority over the script's comedic elements.

Also, those toxic traits do not disappear when Shepard snorts a line of unicorn horn shavings and suddenly becomes a genius, which I thought was, indeed, a genius decision. It is one of my favorite performances from the Son of Rambow actor yet, which is really saying something, and was key to my enjoyment of this modern take on the fantasy genre.

The Other Time Will Poulter Played A Great Problematic Character In An A24 Horror Movie

Curiously, this is not the first time that Poulter has played a despicable douchebag in an A24 horror movie (and make no mistake, Death of a Unicorn is absolutely a new horror movie). The last time was when he added jangled nerves to Midsommar as Mark, who is loud, immature, dismissive of other people's cultures, and just about every other shameful stereotype you could apply to a white male college student.

After realizing the similarities between Shepard and Mark, I then remembered that the writer and director of Midsommar, Ari Aster, is also an executive producer for Death of a Unicorn. I would not be surprised if he had a hand in casting Poulter, knowing the actor would be a perfect match.

Shepard Leopold is not the last despicable douchebag that Poulter will be seen playing this year, as he is reprising his role from Netflix’s interactive movie, Black Mirror: Bandernsatch for Black Mirror Season 7. He also has another A24 flick coming out next month, Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s Warfare, which is sure to demand an entirely different kind of performance from the actor.

After seeing the performance he cooks up in Death of a Unicorn, you can consider me perpetually excited for whatever he delivers next.

The A24 movie schedule can always be counted on to provide films with unique concepts and unsettling situations (just look at A24’s best horror movies). Its next offering on the 2025 movie calendar certainly seems to fit both of those criteria, as the horror-comedy Death of a Unicorn hits the big screen on March 28. Critics screened the movie ahead of its release, and they agree the cast is the most magical element of Alex Scharfman’s directorial debut.

The movie stars Paul Rudd as Elliot and Jenna Ortega as his daughter Ridley. Their weekend trip to Elliot’s boss’ estate takes a turn when they hit (and seemingly kill) a unicorn, and things turn bloody when the pharma billionaires try to exploit the creature’s magic. In CinemaBlend’s review of Death of a Unicorn, Nick Venable has a few gripes but says the scene-stealing Leopolds (particularly Will Poulter and Anthony Carrigan’s characters) compensate for them. He gives the movie 4 out of 5 stars, writing:

Mae Abdulbaki of ScreenRant agrees that Will Poulter steals the show and is “a delight at every moment.” Death of a Unicorn avoids digging into its more serious subject matter, but the cast works well together. The critic gives this crowd-pleaser 7 out of 10 and says::

Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com gives Death of a Unicorn 3 out of 4 stars, noting its Jurassic Park vibes. While its commentary on grief and greed is a bit undercooked and the CGI is a little “janky,” Tallerico says, the performances save the day. By the time the film turns into a slasher, any issues with the visual flaws are forgotten. The critic continues:

Some critics, however, don’t think the cast’s efforts are enough to save it. Jacob Oller of AV Club gives it a C+, saying there’s some gory fun to be had here, but it falls short in its attempts at establishing a connection between Jenna Ortega and Paul Rudd’s characters. Oller writes:

Bill Goodykoontz of the AZ Republic rates the film 3 out of 5 stars, saying it’s less than the sum of its parts. Death of a Unicorn is gory and funny with a cast that keeps things running. It’s just not a great movie. The critic says:

Critics seem to agree that the upcoming Jenna Ortega movie gets the job done in terms of satisfying kills and comedic performances, but between under-developed plots, questionable CGI and a father-daughter relationship that largely misses the mark, they’re split on the movie overall. This is reflected on Rotten Tomatoes, where it stands at 59% on the Tomatometer.

Any less-than-favorable views on Death of a Unicorn shouldn’t keep moviegoers from checking it out. Nearly all of the opinions I read praised Will Poulter and Anthony Carrigan as scene-stealers of an overall-excellent cast, so feel free to draw your own conclusions when this A24 film hits theaters on Friday, March 28.

Back when Parks and Recreation was still on, there was an iconic image taken of Amy Poehler, Adam Scott, Kathryn Hahn, Paul Rudd and Rashida Jones. They looked like they were in a ‘90s legal procedural, and it was titled “Philly Justice.” Now, Poehler has shared more details about this fake show they actually filmed an episode of, and fans are hilariously demanding that this long-lost piece of work from the Parks and Rec cast be released.

Amy Poehler Broke Down All The Work That Went Into Making Philly Justice

Over the years, there have been jokes about Philly Justice. However, recently, Amy Poehler talked about it with Rashida Jones, and confirmed that they filmed an episode! While chatting on her podcast Good Hang, Poehler started her explanation of this goofy idea by saying:

Rashida Jones then chimed in to note that the writers for Parks and Rec took time off writing one of the best sitcoms ever to write an episode of Philly Justice. Honestly, that’s iconic behavior. And to that point, the podcast host revealed just how much work went into this little fake show, saying:

To quote Rashida Jones, “Dude, really!?!” I desperately need to see this, especially since the Leslie Knope actress went on to say that it’s “so good” while revealing some juicy plot details.

Poehler said a producer on Parks sent her the episode and revealed that Jones plays a lawyer named Angie Martinez. She also explained that she thinks the Ann Perkins actress’s character was in love with Kathryn Hahn’s character too, revealing they did "kiss at some point."

This sounds remarkable. Not only does it feature some of the incredible regular cast, but it also highlights two of Parks and Rec’s finest guest stars. So, I agree with all the fans who are demanding that this be released.

Now, The Fans Are Demanding To See Philly Justice

Even though a Parks and Rec revival seems unlikely, there is a rewatch podcast, the cast reunited in 2020 for a special, and they frequently chat about their love for the show. However, while all that’s fine and dandy, I think the world needs Philly Justice.

The fans agree, too. Under the TikTok clip from Good Hang, they were adamant that Philly Justice must see the light of day, writing comments like:

• WE DEMAND (PHILLY) JUSTICE -like.daylightt
• Amy? Amy. AMY. Amy. You cannot toy with us like this. -Rachel
• According to TikTok this was posted 13 hours ago and here we are, still waiting for the Philly Justice premiere. Amy, we are begging you; Save 2025. -justjessonthecape
• What!?! I feel personally offended that you haven’t put this out for me. Clearly this is a one sided friendship. 🤨 -RubyRose
• the people yearn for philly justice PLEASE -Kathryn

The people do “yearn” for Philly Justice, and so do I! In fact, the people want it so badly that they’re pulling out some of Parks and Rec’s finest inside jokes and gags to prove their point, writing hilarious comments like:

• Get on your feet! Get up and make it happen!! 🙏🏻 -recordingwithsam
• IN THE NAME OF LIL SEBASTIAN PLEASE -Erin Rensnick
• In the words of Leslie Knope, please please please please please please please please please please please! -Cajuntexan

So, yeah, the world needs Philly Justice.

Sadly, we don’t know if or when it will be released. However, you can keep listening to Amy Peohler’s podcast Good Hang, and you can see Rashida Jones in Black Mirror when it premieres Season 7 on the 2025 TV schedule. Plus, you can always go back and re-watch Parks and Rec with a Peacock subscription while fantasizing about this hilarious fake show, Philly Justice.

Genre storytelling often involves the reiteration of certain tropes and ideas, with new twists and contexts helping modern projects stand apart from their influences. It’s a practice that 2024’s dread-filled thriller Heretic hinged on, and writer-director Alex Scharfman’s first feature, the fantastical horror-comedy Death of a Unicorn, sounds on paper like a dovetailed mix between I Know What You Did Last Summer and The Simpsons’ “Burger Kings.”

Thankfully, despite any arguable surface-level similarities shared, Death of a Unicorn is a madcap morality tale unto itself, mashing together two families with wildly differing ideologies on how to approach an accidental conundrum that could change the course of human history. It is perhaps unfortunate that one family — widower Elliot Kintner (Paul Rudd) and his thorny daughter Ridley (Jenna Ortega) — often feels ported from a more homogenized version of the script when sharing scenes with the magnificent Leopold clan.

The hyper-wealthy and otherwise oblivious Leopolds comprise the divergence point where Death of a Unicorn goes from emotional daddy-daughter drama to unpitying satire, and it’s during those most bonkers and bloody sequences where Scharfman’s efforts are most rewarding. Which is why it’s mostly unfortunate that Elliot and Ridley are the main characters we’re supposed to be rooting for.

Alex Scharfman crafted a brilliantly straightforward premise for Death of a Unicorn that’s weakened by Jenna Ortega and Paul Rudd’s characters.

Rudd's Elliot Kintner is an attorney who is very clearly more comfortable dealing with occupational hazards than having an authentic conversation with his daughter Ridley (Ortega), and it's clear that his wife's death has weakened his parenting skills even more. To be fair, Ridley has all the hallmarks of an overdramatic on-screen teen, and doesn't provide the easiest route to kinship for her middle-aged father.

Road trips could and should be fun, but the pair are mostly at odds during their drive out to the lavish abode of Elliot's boss Odell Leopold (Richard E. Grant), whose declining health requires a meeting of the minds to avoid a total crisis. And it's that meeting that Elliot is obsessing over when he unwittingly smashes his car into a living, breathing (for now) unicorn. Ridley discovers the magical creature's glowing horn has a distinct impact when touched, making her the most empathetic and sympathetic character throughout all the chaos to come.

Without getting too deep into spoilers, the horn provides unexpected health benefits that the Leopold family is very keen to utilize and exploit, which is what drives a wedge between Elliot and Ridley. Despite some inherently funny and brutal moments caused by their imbalance, the duo's scenes are filled with avoidable sitcom-esque conflicts that could almost all be resolved with a single two-minute conversation. Rather than being a genuinely great father to his kid's face, Elliot thinks impressing his boss will lead to a more financially secure future, which would theoretically make him a great dad in the long run.

If the entire movie was a two-hander just between Rudd and Ortega, their story might not feel as cliché. But once the Leopolds' outlandishness is on display in full, Elliot and Ridley's inherently more important relationship gets completely overshadowed –despite the script continuing its attempts to strike that emotional chord.

Will Poulter and Anthony Carrigan are scene-stealing geniuses from start to finish.

Let's properly meet the Leopolds and their loyal staff, shall we? At the head is the bedridden Odell(Richard E. Grant) and his seemingly doting wife Belinda, with Téa Leoni bringing her signature edge to a character who seems like a doting wife and mother until she isn't. And Grant also plays into his performative strengths as Odell, who goes from sluggish and sickly to stoic and Shakespearean as he is introduced to the unicorn's medical benefits.

But it's the couple's endlessly pampered and spoiled son Shepard who earns the lion's share of Death of a Unicorn's laughs, with Will Poulter dishing out a career-best performance. Despite not having any of his father's ailments, Shep ends up taking advantage of the unicorn horn's mystical powers himself, which magnifies his own inflated ego and sense of self-worth. From his questionable fashion choices to his echoing screams into the night from a hot tub, nearly every one of Poulter's on-screen moments is a comedic highlight.

All that said, this film's comedy crown probably deserves to be shared with Barry and Gotham vet Anthony Carrigan, who makes a staff meal out of what might otherwise have been a forgettable character in a lesser actor's hands. He plays the Leopold's butler Griff, whose unyielding dedication to the family is clearly a detriment to his own mental health – which is stretched to a breaking point once dead unicorns and tales of mythological vengeance enter the picture.

For every crass and loud declaration uttered by Poulter's Shep, Carrigan's Griff sells a moment with just his longing and/or defeated eyes, and it's a testament to his skills that he earns as many big laughs as others do without an abundance of dialogue.

Both the film’s fantasy mythology and unicorn CGI veer between successfully captivating and awkwardly lacking.

Death of a Unicorn might not have been more than a short film if its antagonistic family was able to manipulate the unicorn horn's benefits without any opposing forces, and I applaud Alex Scharfman for drawing upon "real-world" mythologies to give the titular creatures their own arc within the movie. Ridley schools herself in such lore, and makes efforts to get everyone on her side, but to no avail.

But for all that I'm into with the introduction of such lore, the historical context presented is somewhat simplistic, and doesn't give Ridley much to work with when half-assedly trying to make others aware. I likely wouldn't have believed her either, and I know she's telling a movie-truth.

The same mix of appreciation and disappointment can be applied to the film's CGI unicorns. By and large, the close-ups of the creatures are awesome, especially as the movie's horror vibes are working overtime and their sharp teeth are on display. But the digital wizardry falls flatter in wider shots, where the hulking beasts gallop around with movements that are clearly non-organic and feel weightless within the settings.

Despite any lows tied to narrative explanations and visual effects, however, Death of a Unicorn is indeed wildly successful when viewed specifically for its horror-comedy elements. The laughs are sharp and plentiful, and the gore is gross and masterful, often coinciding during the same scenes.

Alex Scharfman has proven himself worthy of directing more quotable, splatter-tastic features in the future, and one can only hope that he gets to work with a similarly fantastic cast the next time around. But even if not everyone can make it, Will Poulter and Anthony Carrigan should be prioritized.

The next time you watch a comedy movie, see if you can picture the star engaging in fisticuffs with a criminal and taking down their henchpeople in a shootout. You never know: they could be Hollywood’s next great action hero.

It may seem unlikely until you realize that many of the best action movies and TV shows of all time have been led by or featured pivotal roles played by stand-up comedians or actors who broke through in funny flicks or even classic TV sitcoms. See for yourself by taking a look at some comedically talented actors who beat the odds by becoming action stars.

Will Smith

After initially coming to prominence as a rap artist, Academy Award winner Will Smith proved he had a charismatic onscreen presence as the star of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air cast in the early 1990s. In 1995, he was cast in director Michael Bay's buddy cop movie, Bad Boys, and, the following year, led Roland Emmerich's action-packed alien invasion flick, Independence Day. There would soon be so much more where those came from.

Cheech Marin

Along with his partner, Tommy Chong, Cheech Marin essentially became the face of stoner comedy, especially after co-leading the classic '70s movie, Up in Smoke. His career would take a turn when he appeared in 1995's Desperado, leading him to become a staple of Robert Rodriguez's movies, and, eventually, began portraying a type of character his roles from the Cheech & Chong movies would try to avoid alongside Don Johnson in the hit cop show, Nash Bridges.

Chris Pratt

By channeling much of the same comedic energy from his scene-stealing breakout role in the Parks and Recreation cast as Andy Dwyer, Chris Pratt helped make 2014's sci-fi odyssey, Guardians of the Galaxy, a light breath of fresh air into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His fun, heartfelt performance as Peter "Star-Lord" Quill also convinced Hollywood he was leading man material, opening the door for him to star in the Jurassic World movies and Amazon Prime's The Terminal List, to name a few.

Paul Rudd

Paul Rudd made his major motion picture debut in the hilarious high school movie classic Clueless before later hit comedies like Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and Knocked Up made him one of Hollywood's most sought-after actors in the genre. He found the perfect role to become inducted into the MCU in the form of Ant-Man, playing the shrinking superhero with the same everyman quality that made him an A-lister.

Michael Keaton

Because Michael Keaton got his start in stand-up comedy and had been best known for movies like Night Shift and Mr. Mom at the time, comic book fans were up in arms over Tim Burton's decision to cast him in his live-action Batman movies, Batman and Batman Returns. The Oscar nominee has since been regarded as one of the best actors to play the Dark Knight (if not the best) and would even return to superhero movies as one of the best Spider-Man movie villains, Vulture, in 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Nicolas Cage

It is easy to forget that Nicolas Cage started out in comedies like Valley Girl and Peggy Sue Got Married before blowing us away in high-octane thrillers like Con Air, Face/Off, and Gone in 60 Seconds. Then again, it is also easy to tell that the Oscar winner has a comedy background from some of his action movie credits, including the three listed above and his even Cagier roles, like from Mandy and Willy's Wonderland.

Damon Wayans

You may have forgotten he was on Saturday Night Live, but you should surely remember Damon Wayans from his days on the In Living Color cast and from sitcoms like My Wife and Kids. Hopefully, you did not also forget about his roles in '90s crime thrillers The Last Boy Scout (opposite Bruce Willis) and Bulletproof (opposite Adam Sandler) or when he took over as Roger Murtaugh for Fox's series adaptation of Lethal Weapon.

Robert Downey Jr.

After lasting one season on Saturday Night Live, appearing in several '80s teen comedies like Weird Science, and earning his first Oscar nod for playing Charlie Chaplin, Robert Downey Jr.'s career would hit a snag in the early 2000s. Luckily, he would make an inspiring comeback after leading the 2005 noir thriller Kiss Kiss Bang Bang before kicking off the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the title role of Iron Man and playing Guy Ritchie's version of Sherlock Holmes.

Eddie Murphy

Many credit Eddie Murphy with single-handedly saving Saturday Night Live in the early 1980s, right before making his feature debut alongside Nick Nolte in Walter Hill's 1982 buddy crime thriller, 48 Hrs. Just two years later, the comedian led his own acclaimed action-comedy movie called Beverly Hills Cop, which made him Hollywood's biggest star.

Bruce Willis

In the mid-to-late 1980s, Bruce Willis was best known for playing David Addison on Moonlighting, starring opposite Kim Basinger in Blind Date, and appearing in commercials for Seagram, which is why audiences initially laughed when they saw him as John McClane in the trailer for Die Hard. However, the 1988 action classic would immediately skyrocket the actor to stardom and turn him into a top Hollywood action star, later known for leading thrillers like The Fifth Element, Armageddon, and Sin City.

Jamie Foxx

Jamie Foxx's stand-up career led him to join the In Living Color cast and lead his own self-titled sitcom before his Oscar-winning performance in the 2004 music biopic, Ray, and Oscar-nominated performance in Collateral the same year opened wider doors for him. He went on to star in more thrillers like Jarhead, The Kingdom, Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 as Electro, and White House Down.

Alan Ritchson

One of Alan Ritchson's first major acting credits was playing doltish college football player Thad Castle on the uproarious sitcom Blue Mountain State before landing a small role in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, doing performance capture for the 2014 and 2017 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies, and playing Hank "Hawk" Hall on Titans. The 6'3" actor's defining, star-making turn came when he was cast in the title role of the hit Amazon Prime TV show, Reacher, leading to his casting in Guy Ritchie's The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.

Lucy Liu

Lucy Liu landed her breakthrough role on the hit workplace dramedy Ally McBeal as Ling Woo. Soon after, she achieved cinematic stardom in 2000's Charlie's Angels, teamed up with Antonio Banderas in the 2002 spy thriller Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever, and was cast as ruthless assassin O-Ren Ishii in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill.

Bob Odenkirk

Bob Odenkirk wrote for Saturday Night Live for years in the 1980s before co-leading his own acclaimed sketch comedy series with David Cross called Mr. Show, which was his main claim to fame for years. However, he stumbled onto a new career path when he joined the Breaking Bad cast as Saul Goodman, who earned his own prequel spin-off called Better Call Saul, before leading his own action flick called Nobody.

Martin Lawrence

Martin Lawrence led a successful stand-up career that turned into a successful TV career with his hit sitcom, Martin, in between starring in movies like Do the Right Thing and Boomerang. In 1995, he played Det. Marcus Burnett, for the first of multiple times in Bad Boys and even went on to play a cop in a few more overt comedies, namely Blue Streak and Big Momma's House.

Ryan Reynolds

For years, even after starring in more earnest thrillers like Smokin' Aces and Safe House, it seemed like Ryan Reynolds' defining performance would forever be the title role of National Lampoon's Van Wilder, which paved the way for him to star in more raunchy comedies like Waiting... or Just Friends. However, that would change in 2016 when he led Deadpool, which is still very much on the side of silly but is also as action-packed as any other comic book movie.

Sam Richardson

Sam Richardson quickly became a favorite in the comedy landscape for his hilarious performances in shows like I Think You Should Leave, Veep, and Ted Lasso. He would later go on to impress audiences in Amazon Prime's action-packed time travel movie The Tomorrow War opposite Chris Pratt, as the lead of the 2021 horror-comedy movie Werewolves Within, and in Paramount+'s Star Trek: Section 31.

Keanu Reeves

As the star of franchises like the John Wick movies and the Matrix films, in addition to favorites like Speed and Point Break, Keanu Reeves is one of the most prolific action stars in cinema history. Thus, it is sometimes hard to believe that he is the same actor who, excellently, played one-half of the titular duo from the Bill & Ted movies.

John Goodman

John Goodman began rising to prominence on the groundbreaking sitcom Roseanne as Dan Conner (whom he would reprise in the revival series The Conners). However, he has managed to cover just about every genre you can think of throughout his career, including action films like Kong: Skull Island and Atomic Blonde.

Emily Blunt

It might seem like a stretch to call Emily Blunt a comedy star, but she did find her breakthrough film role with a hilarious scene-stealing performance in 2006's The Devil Wears Prada. She would later prove she could play someone with a rougher exterior when she starred opposite Tom Cruise in the thrilling time loop movie, Edge of Tomorrow, and in Denis Villeneuve's stunning Sicario.

Rick Moranis

Rick Moranis is one of the most treasured comedic actors of his time, from his days at SCTV starring alongside Dave Thomas as the McKenzie Brothers (who led their own 1983 movie, Strange Brew), to appearing in films like Ghostbusters, Little Shop of Horrors, and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. In the middle of those comedy classics was a role in Walter Hill's dystopian "Rock 'n Roll fable," Streets of Fire.

Bill Burr

Bill Burr used to mock the Star Wars movies in some of his stand-up bits, which gave The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau a funny idea to bring him into the galaxy far, far away. He cast the Massachusetts-born comedian on the series as a mercenary named Migs Mayfield, which Burr has since recognized as one of the highlights of his career.

John Leguizamo

Despite getting his start as a stand-up comedian, many of John Leguizamo's earliest acting roles have actually been in action movies, including Die Hard 2 and Executive Decision. In addition to more humorous credits, like To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar and the Ice Age movies, more thrillers would come his way, such as the John Wick movies and Violent Night.

Owen Wilson

Owen Wilson may be closely associated with comedies like Bottle Rocket, Meet the Parents, and Zoolander, but the actor has diversified his talents over various styles. He has even tried his hand at the action genre a few times, most notably in Behind Enemy Lines, No Escape, and Disney+'s MCU-canon series, Loki

Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks' first major show business breakthrough was a sitcom called Bosom Buddies, which led to roles in comedy films like Bachelor Party and Turner & Hooch. It was his Oscar-winning roles in Philadelphia and Forrest Gump that opened the door for him to star in intense dramas like the acclaimed war movie Saving Private Ryan and the sci-fi epic Cloud Atlas.

Val Kilmer

Some of Val Kilmer's most iconic roles include Iceman in Top Gun, Doc Holliday in the Western movie classic Tombstone, and the title role of Batman Forever. However, his breakthrough films were the ridiculous spy parody, Top Secret!, and the college comedy, Real Genius, in the early-to-mid 1980s.

Mila Kunis

Mila Kunis rose to fame as Jackie Burkhart in the That '70s Show cast and as the voice of Meg on Family Guy before acquiring A-list fame. Her action movie credits, namely the video game movie adaptation Max Payne and the Wachowski's ambitious sci-fi adventure, Jupiter Ascending, have not been her most esteemed efforts, but we will still count them.

Randall Park

Randall Park is best known for leading the sitcom Fresh off the Boat, his hilarious cameo on The Office as "Asian Jim Halpert," and for hit comedy movies like The Interview and Neighbors. He has also become a staple of the comic book movie genre with his role in the MCU as Agent Jimmy Woo and as Dr. Shin in the Aquaman movies.

Shia LaBeouf

Shia LaBeouf started making a name for himself when he was a teen as Louis on the Disney Channel original comedy series, Even Stevens. He went on to make a Hollywood breakthrough in the Transformers movies, which led to his roles in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and, eventually, David Ayer's 2014 war drama, Fury.

Malin Akerman

Before she became the first actor to play Silk Spectre II in live-action in 2009's Watchmen, Malin Akerman rose to fame in comedy movies like 2007's The Heartbreak Kid and shows like Children's Hospital.

Jim Belushi

Just like his late older brother, John, Jim Belushi broke out on Saturday Night Live. Unlike John, Jim achieved a brief career in action movies, such as Red Heat with Arnold Schwarzenegger, The Principal, and Oliver Stone's Salvador.

Ernest Borgnine

Ernest Borgnine was already an Oscar-winning movie star when he was cast as the lead of the hit sitcom, McHale's Navy. Eventually, he would appear in more earnest action-oriented titles, such as a made-for-TV adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, John Carpenter's Escape from New York, and 2010's RED.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is showing no signs of slowing down, with new content arriving in theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. Fans who spent years watching the Marvel movies in order will remember a popular theory that Ant-Man could kill Thanos by entering his butt and growing. And Paul Rudd trying to explain this to his Death of a Unicorn co-star Jenna Ortega is seriously delightful.

While fans have countless questions about upcoming Marvel movies like the next two Avengers flicks, there are current fan theories about past project that are still circulating online. While speaking with ComicBook about his new movie, Rudd was asked if the Thanos butt strategy could work on Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom in the next Avengers flicks. He mused on the subject, saying:

He's not wrong. Ant-Man was noticeably missing from Avengers: Infinity War, where he was shown assembling the Infinity Stones. And while he was killed in the opening sequence of Endgame, the Time Heist brought him back and once again saw him wielding the Stones. So Ant-Man trying to kill the Mad Titan via the Thanus theory might have resulted in certain death for Rudd's hero.

During this interview Paul Rudd tried to catch Jenna Ortega up on the theory involving his hero and Thanos, offering:

• Rudd: Do you know what we’re talking about? There was a theory — going against Thanos, why didn’t Ant-Man just … instead of Thanos, it was ‘Thanus,’ go up Thanos and then expand.
• Ortega: I thought he was already big … the purple one?
• Rudd: I get really small.
• Ortega: Oh, that’s right, you’re called Ant-Man!

It looks like the star of Wednesday (which is streaming with a Netflix subscription) isn't caught up on the MCU. Ortega recently reminisced about her tiny role in Iron Man 2 as a child actress, but it doesn't sound like she's kept up with the shared universe since.

Fans of the MCU have been wondering about what comes next for Paul Rudd's Ant-Man for a while now. After the threequel Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania failed to perform at the box office, its been unclear if he'll be getting another solo movie. Alternatively he could just appear in big crossover projects.

Moviegoers assume that Ant-Man and the rest of Earth's Mightiest Heroes will return for Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars. These projects are currently in development, with The Russo Brothers returning to the MCU for the occasion. But news on those projects is very limited, as they're not even in the 2025 movie release list.

1997's Anaconda gave viewers one of the more horrifying movie animals that we still love with its larger-than-life snake. And as it goes, this Amazonian adventure is one of many feature revivals debuting across the 2025 movie schedule. According to one of its human stars, Paul Rudd, ‘it’s not a remake,' and the unconventional metatwist at the heart of it sounds like a potential homerun for Rudd, co-star Jack Black, and director Tom Gormican.

While at SXSW promoting Death of a Unicorn's premiere, Rudd shared with Collider that the new take on the Ice Cube and Jennifer Lopez-led film isn’t what you’d expect, sharing that this iteration of Anaconda is in the same unbridled spirit as Gormican's previous film The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent. Beyond that slice of hype, the MCU actor teased how it's more of a comedic homage as opposed to a direct continuation or reimagining, saying:

It sounds like quite the present waiting for us on Christmas Day. (Its release day, and not a random comment.) If it’s anything like how the two funnymen presented the Anaconda cast list, I know exactly where I’ll be in the back half of the holiday season. Meta, post-modern approaches to movies and TV shows aren’t for everyone, but for fans like me, who loved seeing NIc Cage reference and play into his legacy and extensive filmography, I’m thrilled to see another Gormican title like it. We’ll have to see if he and his cast can land this big fish – I mean snake.

All in all though, it feels like the flick will deliever the goods even beyond its two stars. But it also doesn’t hurt that Paul Rudd has two other movies on the way – the aforementioned Death of a Unicorn and A24's cringe comedy A24's cringe comedy Friendship (which co-stars Tim Robinson), while Jack Black is heading up A Minecraft Movie. All three projects, and their genres, seem like suitable environments to have been in before jumping in to a midlife-crisis role where the character is invested in reliving the magic of fighting off a shockingly massive anaconda (per the public summary).

Who knows how this will actually stand in comparison to the Luis Llosa film, and how it'll work independently as a meta comedy, but it’s bound to be a bonkers ride. With what’s been released about the coming not-revival, Black, Rudd, Gormican and co. seem to have the serpent under control and on its way to us in a timely manner.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is always keeping fans on their toes, thanks to content being released in theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. Said fandom is always looking forward to the upcoming Marvel movies, and that's certainly the case when it comes to The Russo Brothers' Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. Paul Rudd recently played coy when asked if he was appearing as Ant-Man, and he's much better at this than Tom Holland.

Fans who spent years watching the Marvel movies in order will know that Holland has been known for revealing spoilers. Of course, he's not alone; Mark Ruffalo literally spoiled the end of Infinity War. Rudd is seemingly smarter than this, and he played it cool when asked by Collider about his possible appearance in the next two Avengers flicks. In his words:

There you have. Paul Rudd doesn't not sound like he's hiding something, but he was also careful to not actually reveal anything. Instead, he seems down to play Scott Lang in whatever story the Russos are planning. And considering their work together in Endgame, there's seemingly already trust there.

Not much is known about what the Russo Brothers are cooking up with the next two Avengers movies, but they're expected to be massive, multiversal stories. And since there have been some box office bombs like The Marvels, the pressure is on for these crossover events to revive fan interest in the shared universe as a whole.

Luckily, there are already a number of major factors going for these titles already. To start, Robert Downey Jr.'s return to the MCU as the villainous Doctor Doom broke the internet, and is sure to get butts in seats. It was also reported that Chris Evans will be back, although which version of his character will be in the adventure remains to be unseen. Of course, moviegoers want to see a full cast list, and know which heroes will appear (and presumably come to blows).

While Paul Rudd was noticeably absent from Infinity War, Ant-Man was major presence and low key saved the world during Endgame. The Time Heist was his idea, starting the mission to assemble the Infinity Stones and snap everyone back into existence after five years.

It should be interesting to see what Ant-Man's future in the MCU looks like. Because while Rudd is endlessly charismatic, his threequel Quantumania failed to make money at the box office, and was one of many disappointments that have hit theaters since Endgame. So fans are curious to see if he'll get any more solo movies, or if Scott Lang will instead just appear in crossover projects like The Avengers.

Captain America: Brave New World is still in theaters now and the MCU will follow suit with Thunderbolts* on May 5th as pat of the 2025 movie release list. But we seemingly shouldn't expect a surprise appearance by Rudd.

Considering just how big the Marvel Cinematic Universe has become, even if you’re not a huge fan, you probably have a movie or two that you enjoy. Of course, the actors who appear in the MCU have their favorites as well. And a lot of them, as it turns out, actually love the same movie: Thor: Ragnarok.

Speaking with six different actors who have appeared in the MCU, Disney’s D23 Fan Club finds four of them of them who are big fans of Taika Waititi’s first outing directing a Marvel film. Both Simu Liu and Iman Vilani list it among their favorites, as does Ant-Man star Paul Rudd, who said…

However, one of the more surprising people who put Ragnarok on the top of their list was Natalie Portman. She’s one of the few who picks a franchise that she’s actually part of, but she picks the one Thor movie she wasn’t in, saying…

To be fair, it’s completely understandable why so many people love Thor: Ragnarok, it’s actually just a flat-out great movie in my opinon. Portman’s comment that it makes you smile the whole time is right on the money. The movie is fun, funny and exciting in equal measure. Whatever it is you love about Marvel movies, or just movies in general, Thor: Ragnarok has it. It’s one of the best MCU movies to date.

Paul Rudd, being a part of one of the other comedy-focused corners of the MCU is sure to appreciate the movies in the franchise that have made you laugh. Natalie Portman made her return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the movie that followed Ragnarok. It seems quite likely that her love for it is part of the reason Taikia Waititi was able to convince her to come back in a single meeting.

The fact that many of the follow-up Thor: Love and Thunder took things a little too far (even Chris Hemsworth sees it as a failure) shows just how precarious the balance was, and how easy it was to overdo it all.

One thing that’s probably worth noting, is that of all the movies mentioned by the various stars, none of them call a movie that has been released post-Avengers: Endgame their favorite. That’s probably something that Marvel would like to change. Perhaps one of the other upcoming Marvel movies will become somebody's favorite.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a giant franchise, one that keeps fans on their toes with new content in theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. Fans who have spent years watching the Marvel movies in order have seen what electric chemistry the cast has, and love to hear the hi jinx that happen on and off set. And Anthony Mackie recently revealed which of his super powered co-stars he'd like to see kicked out of the Avengers group chat.

The Hurt Locker actor has been doing a ton of press as he leads the cast of Captain America: Brave New World. While appearing on Hot Ones Versus alongside co-star Danny Ramirez, Mackie mentioned that infamous Avengers group chat that we'd all like to join. He joked about wanting Paul Rudd kicked out of it, offering:

Shots fired. Honestly it sounds like Paul Rudd is a bit of a shady assassin in the group chat. He's able to poke fun at his co-stars without them even knowing, bringing new meaning to the phrase "slow burn." And it's because of that Mackie is ready to kick the Clueless icon to the curb.

It's fun seeing this faux feud between Mackie and Rudd, considering their character's somewhat contentious history in the MCU. Falcon had a brief but memorable role in the first Ant-Man movie, where Scott Lang attempted to steal from the Avengers Compound. We'll just have to see if they get to share the screen again in any upcoming Marvel movies coming down the pipeline.

Of course, Rudd isn't the only one that Anthony Mackie would like to see voted out of the Avengers group chat. He named another one of Earth's Mightiest Heroes in the same Hot Ones appearance, namely:

While he didn't offer any reasons as to why Cheadle needs to get the boot, it's fun getting a peek behind the curtain at the interpersonal dynamics at play with the Avengers. Mackie shared more about what these relationships are like off camera, saying:

How sweet is that? As much as they might like to poke fun at each other, it's clear that there's a ton of love shared between the cast of The Avengers. Many of these names are expected to reunite on screen in The Russo's next big crossover events Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars. While the studio is keeping its plans under wraps, hopefully we'll get more information sooner rather than later. For now, Captain America: Brave New World is still in theaters.

When it comes to 2025 movies, there’s a lot to be excited about, especially on the upcoming A24 movies front, in my opinion. One movie that’s starting to inch closer to the top of my list right now is Death of the Unicorn’s release date, especially after its new trailer (which you can watch above) totally and oddly reminds me of an all-time great popcorn movie: Jurassic Park.

Now, Death of the Unicorn is not a Jurassic Park movie – and in fact, we’re getting one of those in the form of this summer’s release of Jurassic World Rebirth. Actually, Death of the Unicorn was one of the few independent films that filmed during the actor’s strikes. However, the new trailer does remind me of what makes the original 1993 movie great. It’s exploring the idea of a legendary creature, and how we humans would find a way to absolutely wreck its existence if we could get the hold of it.

As the trailer teases, Paul Rudd’s Elliot and Jenna Ortega’s Ridley (who play father and daughter) will accidentally kill a unicorn while driving to a summit for Eliot’s work. Following the unicorn being found, the Leopold family, whom Eliot works for, will jump right to using their riches to exploit the unicorn and find more like it.

As legend has it, unicorns have incredible healing properties, so they think they are doing a good thing by hunting unicorns and using their components to save humankind. However, they will find a killer unicorn somewhere during the movie that will hunt them down (and perhaps get revenge) for playing around with natural forces they don’t understand.

I absolutely love movies that explore ideas about humankind and how twisted we can be. Not only do a lot of concepts explored in the trailer remind me of Jurassic Park, some of the specific sequences do too. When Rudd’s character is hiding behind cars to avert the deadly unicorn (or whatever monster that is), or when it breathes on Jenna Ortega’s character, it reminds me of the kitchen scene when the raptor is right next to the kids. Of course, that scene also feels like a clear reference to Alien. Oh, and her name is Ripley, so duh!

As soon as I heard one of the Leopolds declare that it is their “moral imperative to harvest every last one,” I only got more excited for Death Of A Unicorn as well. Between this trailer and the one that came out two months ago on YouTube, I can tell the movie is full of quirky humor and may go to some fun and twisted places. Honestly, I might be more excited for this movie, coming out March 28, than the new Jurassic World entry on originality alone.