With films likeThe Martian, Gravity, Interstellar,andStar Trek(and I supposeStar Wars), Hollywood has shown quite the interest in space these last few years. So it was only a matter of time until comedy took that giant leap. And according toTHR, they’ll be doing so with their A-team.
Bill Hader,Seth Rogen, andZach Galifianakisare set to star inThe Something, a “space-set comedy” written by22 Jump Streetco-writerRodneyRothman, who will make his directorial debut on the project. The film will follow a crew of astronauts who, after being stuck in space for years, eventually come across another space ship.
The project will be produced by Rogen andEvan Goldberg’s company Point Grey Pictures, alongside Good Universe, who together have recently found success with50/50,This Is The End, andNeighbors. Accordingly, Rogen will also serve as a producer, as he has with those previous projects.
Even without that synopsis, I would be interested in anything these guys do together. They are some of the funniest comedians making movies today, and a film fronted by any one of them solo would be worthwhile, let alone one with all three. And it’s always good to see Hader in high-profile films like this. Last summer’sTrainwreckproved the guy can, and needs to be, in more leading man roles. This project should help with that.
As far as Rothman goes, I am not as familiar with his work.22 Jump Streetwas well-received, so he has proven himself as a writer (even withGrudge Matchalso on his resume). But it will be interesting to see how he fairs as a director. If he was able to attract talented comedians like Rogen, Hader, and Galifianakis, though, all he has to do is not get in their way (while keeping them under control, of course). It sounds like we can probably expect plenty of CGI and special effects, but ifThis Is The Endtaught us anything (other than the fact thatMichael Cerais not nice), it’s that comedy and CGI can be properly mixed together. Also, Rogen’s production company has had a string of hits, to the point that you almost expect them to find and make good projects. Let’s hopeThe Somethingwill be one of them.
