'Friendship' director talks 'brilliant' Tim Robinson, that Subway hallucination scene
'Friendship' director talks 'brilliant' Tim Robinson, that Subway hallucination scene
Show Caption
Hide Caption
Paul Rudd, Tim Robinson break up in buddy comedy 'Friendship'
"I Think You Should Leave" star Tim Robinson brings his awkward comedy to "Friendship," co-starring Paul Rudd, Kate Mara and Jack Dylan Grazer.
Paul Rudd is caught in a bad bromance.
In director Andrew DeYoung's squirmy, silly 'Friendship' (now in theaters nationwide), the Marvel star plays a small-town weatherman named Austin, who extends a hand to his painfully awkward neighbor Craig (Tim Robinson). But after a smattering of deeply uncomfortable and boundary-crossing hangs, Austin decides to sever ties with Craig, who slowly loses his mind trying to win back his erstwhile buddy.
Thanks in part to Robinson's 'I Think You Should Leave' Netflix following, 'Friendship' has already become an unlikely box-office hit, scoring 2025's top opening in limited release earlier this month. DeYoung attributes the movie's success to 'Tim's work thus far and the fandom he's created.' But also, 'most of us are really dying for something original and not touched by 1,000 corporate fingerprints.'
DeYoung recently spoke with USA TODAY about the inspiration behind his insanely quotable comedy, as well as the origins of some of its most uproarious bits.
Question: You wrote this film after a blossoming friendship went south. Were you taken aback by any of the emotions that experience brought up?
Andrew DeYoung: There wasn't anything surprising for me. Friendship is this primal, essential need for all of us, but (in this particular case), there were no deep roots there. The rejection was quite shallow and pathetic, especially as an adult. And that's what spurred the movie. I was like, 'Oh, this is kind of funny, feeling rejected in this way.' There are so many adults like myself walking around with these adolescent feelings of rejection. It's just so human, and I thought it'd be funny to see a breakup story between two straight men.
The movie is so in line with Tim's sensibilities and humor. Did you ever call on him to tweak any jokes?
All the time. I wrote this and sent it to him, and as we shot, he basically went scene by scene like, 'Can I change this?" or 'What do you think about that?' He was always really respectful of the material, but wanted to make sure it felt honest to him. I love Tim to death and think he's so brilliant, so I was always down to hear whatever he had to say.
In one of the film's most memorable scenes, Craig has a wholly unremarkable hallucination set inside a Subway store. Was it always Subway from the get-go?
Yeah, I got extremely lucky that they agreed to it. The fun is playing on expectations and building it up. We've seen the crazy version (of a drug trip) so many times in other movies and done so brilliantly. I was like, 'I can't beat that,' so what's more interesting here is that nothing happens.
Craig exclusively wears the fictional Ocean View Dining clothing line. How did you land on that particular brand?
(Laughs.) That's really funny. I was driving up the coast by Big Sur and one of the hotels along the beach was advertising 'ocean-view dining.' That just got lodged in my brain, so when I was writing the script, I was like, 'I need a brand name!' and that popped into my head.
He's also infatuated with the artery-clogging SEAL Team Six Meal, which he claims they ordered after killing Osama Bin Laden. Does that actually exist in some fashion?
(Laughs.) Not to my knowledge. I was just thinking that Craig has this fascination with hypermasculinity, and the celebration of war and the military in a light way. It just felt like something he would be stoked on.
At one of their earliest hangouts, Austin leads a group singalong of Ghost Town DJ's' "My Boo" in his garage. Did you ever consider any other songs for that moment?
In the script, it was Whitney Houston's 'I Wanna Dance with Somebody,' but that's a very expensive song so we had to look at other versions. My music supervisor, Rob Lowry, pitched this and I thought it was incredible – maybe even better – because it's such a banger, but it's not as widely known as Whitney Houston. The lyrics are also pretty perfect, so we lucked out with that one.
In the last few years especially, there's been so much written about the so-called male loneliness epidemic. How does it feel to join that discussion in your own weird, twisted way?
I never set out to engage with it, although I know that's something people talk about. For decades, we've seen the decline of community – even just in my own life living in Los Angeles, you feel that lack of community. I want people to have a good time and laugh with this movie, but still, at the heart of it are these deep-rooted social issues that are affecting all of us. I want to make sure I honor those in the reality of the world I'm building, although I wouldn't consider myself an expert at all!
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNN
39 minutes ago
- CNN
Hollywood loves a comeback story: What the 2025 box-office rebound means for summer blockbusters
The movie industry hasn't caught many breaks in recent years, even after rebounding from the Covid-19 pandemic. Studios were faced with a writers' strike, blockbusters that fell well below expectations and dilemmas over when to release movies into theaters before having them stream online. The domestic box office continued a trend of getting the year off to a slow start, as January lacked a strong carryover movie from the holiday season or a surprise audience pleaser, renewing fears the industry faces long-term financial woes. The box office for January 1 to April 3 was down 13% compared to the same time last year, which in turn was down 7.6% compared with 2023. 'It's not like a hard-and-fast rule that the first three months are typically slow. Sometimes they can be huge if you have a big holdover movie and a couple of breakout hits,' said Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst at Comscore. The first major release of 2025 was Marvel's 'Captain America: Brave New World,' which opened in February to more than $100 million over the four-day Presidents Day holiday weekend, only to see its earnings plunge 68% in the second week. Things didn't improve much from there. In March, the box office was down nearly 50% compared with the same month last year, according to Comscore data. Ticket sales certainly weren't buoyed by Disney's 'Snow White,' which opened to a meager $43 million amid polarizing reactions about casting and politics. But then came the turnaround. April brought a wide variety of movies that drew in nostalgic audiences and moviegoers following positive buzz. Carrying much of the load for the month was Warner Bros. Pictures. The studio's 'A Minecraft Movie' debuted to nearly $163 million, while Ryan Coogler's highly acclaimed 'Sinners' has exceeded expectations with over $275 million in domestic sales. Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN. Following the strong performance from 'Minecraft,' the industry had a record Memorial Day weekend that saw the box office up 22% compared with 2024. It was led by Disney's live-action 'Lilo & Stitch' remake opening to a record $183 million. 'Lilo & Stitch' has so far grossed over $380 million domestically and may soon overtake 'Minecraft' ($423.9 million) as this year's biggest earner. Other May winners include the big-budget Disney/Marvel movie 'Thunderbolts' ($189 million), Paramount's 'Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning,' ($173 million) and Warner Bros.' 'Final Destination: Bloodlines' ($133 million). The momentum has carried over into June with 'How to Train Your Dragon.' Universal's live-action remake has already grossed nearly $135 million since opening last weekend. The overall box office is closing in on $4 billion for all of 2025 — an 18% gain compared to this time last year, according to Comscore data. 2023 marked the first post-pandemic year to earn more than $4 billion between the first Friday of May and Labor Day, according to Comscore. Greg Durkin, founder of entertainment research firm Enact Insights, attributes the industry's comeback to a rise in quality films. And high-potential movies are about to be released. Warner Bros. Pictures' 'F1' and Universal Pictures' 'M3GAN 2.0' are set to open Friday. July will include Universal Pictures' 'Jurassic World Rebirth,' and Warner Bros.' 'Superman,' which Durkin said will be 'tremendous' hits at the box office. He added that Disney's July release of 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' will also do well. ''Superman' and 'Fantastic Four' and maybe to a degree 'Jurassic World,' will be big players' to nearly reach $4 billion this summer, said Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory. 'We're not selling Frosted Flakes or Coca-Cola … This is a product that reinvents itself every week,' said Daniel Loria, editorial director at Boxoffice Pro. Movies have 'fortunately' connected better with audiences, but it's still a 'risky business,' Loria added. Having a diverse movie slate can be helpful. Since April, moviegoers have had the choice of children and family movies ('How to Train Your Dragon' and 'Lilo & Stitch'), action flicks ('Mission Impossible — The Final Reckoning'), horror ('Sinners') and romantic comedies ('Materialists'). 'The lineup goes on hot and cold streaks. Something can look good on paper but not work in release, and vice versa,' said box office analyst David A. Gross, who publishes FranchiseRe. Gross noted that even superhero movies, such as 'Captain America' and 'Thunderbolts,' haven't consistently performed well compared to pre-pandemic years. And while April and May helped this year's box office bounce back from a slow start, June will be down about 6.5% compared to last year and down almost 26% compared with the pre-pandemic average, according to estimates from Gross. 'The 'recovery' compared with last year is slipping, so it's not time to pop the champagne just yet,' Gross said. In times of broader political and economic uncertainty, Americans have shown they will pull away from expensive commitments and seek smaller pleasures. For some, that means trading in vacations and indulging in less expensive purchases. 'It's pretty cheap to go to a movie, relative to going to rent a house and get on a flight, or rent a car,' said Durkin. 'You still need that escapism.' The movie theater is a social experience, Durkin said, which makes it fulfilling and worthwhile. In Clarksdale, Mississippi — the town which inspired the setting of 'Sinners' — a special screening was hosted to allow locals in the theater-less town to watch the film together. Moviegoers are still 'price sensitive,' Loria said. Although premium offerings can price a single ticket as high as $25 in cities like New York and Los Angeles, theater chains such as AMC offer discount screenings on Tuesdays. On July 9, AMC will start offering 50% discounts on Wednesdays. 'It's a relatively inexpensive way to escape the outside world for a couple of hours,' said Dergarabedian, adding that PG-rated films have been 'booming' as families head to theaters. 'Looking at 2025 in a vacuum — what a great recovery,' he said. 'It's all product-based. It's the movies that determine the box office, not the month.'
CNN
44 minutes ago
- CNN
Hollywood loves a comeback story: What the 2025 box-office rebound means for summer blockbusters
The movie industry hasn't caught many breaks in recent years, even after rebounding from the Covid-19 pandemic. Studios were faced with a writers' strike, blockbusters that fell well below expectations and dilemmas over when to release movies into theaters before having them stream online. The domestic box office continued a trend of getting the year off to a slow start, as January lacked a strong carryover movie from the holiday season or a surprise audience pleaser, renewing fears the industry faces long-term financial woes. The box office for January 1 to April 3 was down 13% compared to the same time last year, which in turn was down 7.6% compared with 2023. 'It's not like a hard-and-fast rule that the first three months are typically slow. Sometimes they can be huge if you have a big holdover movie and a couple of breakout hits,' said Paul Dergarabedian, senior analyst at Comscore. The first major release of 2025 was Marvel's 'Captain America: Brave New World,' which opened in February to more than $100 million over the four-day Presidents Day holiday weekend, only to see its earnings plunge 68% in the second week. Things didn't improve much from there. In March, the box office was down nearly 50% compared with the same month last year, according to Comscore data. Ticket sales certainly weren't buoyed by Disney's 'Snow White,' which opened to a meager $43 million amid polarizing reactions about casting and politics. But then came the turnaround. April brought a wide variety of movies that drew in nostalgic audiences and moviegoers following positive buzz. Carrying much of the load for the month was Warner Bros. Pictures. The studio's 'A Minecraft Movie' debuted to nearly $163 million, while Ryan Coogler's highly acclaimed 'Sinners' has exceeded expectations with over $275 million in domestic sales. Warner Bros. Discovery is the parent company of CNN. Following the strong performance from 'Minecraft,' the industry had a record Memorial Day weekend that saw the box office up 22% compared with 2024. It was led by Disney's live-action 'Lilo & Stitch' remake opening to a record $183 million. 'Lilo & Stitch' has so far grossed over $380 million domestically and may soon overtake 'Minecraft' ($423.9 million) as this year's biggest earner. Other May winners include the big-budget Disney/Marvel movie 'Thunderbolts' ($189 million), Paramount's 'Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning,' ($173 million) and Warner Bros.' 'Final Destination: Bloodlines' ($133 million). The momentum has carried over into June with 'How to Train Your Dragon.' Universal's live-action remake has already grossed nearly $135 million since opening last weekend. The overall box office is closing in on $4 billion for all of 2025 — an 18% gain compared to this time last year, according to Comscore data. 2023 marked the first post-pandemic year to earn more than $4 billion between the first Friday of May and Labor Day, according to Comscore. Greg Durkin, founder of entertainment research firm Enact Insights, attributes the industry's comeback to a rise in quality films. And high-potential movies are about to be released. Warner Bros. Pictures' 'F1' and Universal Pictures' 'M3GAN 2.0' are set to open Friday. July will include Universal Pictures' 'Jurassic World Rebirth,' and Warner Bros.' 'Superman,' which Durkin said will be 'tremendous' hits at the box office. He added that Disney's July release of 'The Fantastic Four: First Steps' will also do well. ''Superman' and 'Fantastic Four' and maybe to a degree 'Jurassic World,' will be big players' to nearly reach $4 billion this summer, said Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory. 'We're not selling Frosted Flakes or Coca-Cola … This is a product that reinvents itself every week,' said Daniel Loria, editorial director at Boxoffice Pro. Movies have 'fortunately' connected better with audiences, but it's still a 'risky business,' Loria added. Having a diverse movie slate can be helpful. Since April, moviegoers have had the choice of children and family movies ('How to Train Your Dragon' and 'Lilo & Stitch'), action flicks ('Mission Impossible — The Final Reckoning'), horror ('Sinners') and romantic comedies ('Materialists'). 'The lineup goes on hot and cold streaks. Something can look good on paper but not work in release, and vice versa,' said box office analyst David A. Gross, who publishes FranchiseRe. Gross noted that even superhero movies, such as 'Captain America' and 'Thunderbolts,' haven't consistently performed well compared to pre-pandemic years. And while April and May helped this year's box office bounce back from a slow start, June will be down about 6.5% compared to last year and down almost 26% compared with the pre-pandemic average, according to estimates from Gross. 'The 'recovery' compared with last year is slipping, so it's not time to pop the champagne just yet,' Gross said. In times of broader political and economic uncertainty, Americans have shown they will pull away from expensive commitments and seek smaller pleasures. For some, that means trading in vacations and indulging in less expensive purchases. 'It's pretty cheap to go to a movie, relative to going to rent a house and get on a flight, or rent a car,' said Durkin. 'You still need that escapism.' The movie theater is a social experience, Durkin said, which makes it fulfilling and worthwhile. In Clarksdale, Mississippi — the town which inspired the setting of 'Sinners' — a special screening was hosted to allow locals in the theater-less town to watch the film together. Moviegoers are still 'price sensitive,' Loria said. Although premium offerings can price a single ticket as high as $25 in cities like New York and Los Angeles, theater chains such as AMC offer discount screenings on Tuesdays. On July 9, AMC will start offering 50% discounts on Wednesdays. 'It's a relatively inexpensive way to escape the outside world for a couple of hours,' said Dergarabedian, adding that PG-rated films have been 'booming' as families head to theaters. 'Looking at 2025 in a vacuum — what a great recovery,' he said. 'It's all product-based. It's the movies that determine the box office, not the month.'
Newsweek
2 hours ago
- Newsweek
Prince Harry and Meghan's Biggest U.S. Scandals
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were frequent targets of the British press as working royals, but it was only after several years in the United States that they began to face controversy across the pond as well. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have experienced successes since moving to California, but have also faced their fair share of crises. Meghan's mock curtsy, Harry's frostbite, and allegations of staff mistreatment have been just some of the moments fans of the couple might prefer to forget. Meghan's Curtsy to Queen Elizabeth II The duchess used the couple's December 2022 Netflix show, Harry & Meghan, to describe her first-ever curtsy to Queen Elizabeth, but it provoked a backlash for allegedly disrespecting British culture. Meghan re-created the curtsy she said she performed, bowing at the waist and spreading her arms wide in either direction. "I mean, Americans would understand this," she said. "We have Medieval Times Dinner & was like that." She had previously described the meeting to Oprah Winfrey in 2021 without mentioning any issues with her curtsy, and Harry went on to say it was "flawless" in his memoir, Spare. Many came away feeling the mock curtsy had disrespected a long-standing British tradition, and the fact that the queen had died three months earlier no doubt did not help. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend the Invictus Games in Vancouver, Canada, on February 9, 2025. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attend the Invictus Games in Vancouver, Canada, on February 9, 2025. Samir Hussein/WireImage Prince Harry Mocked Over Frostbite Harry's book, Spare, was released a month later and led to ridicule after he described in detail applying his mother's favorite Elizabeth Arden lip cream to his frost-bitten private parts. "My penis was oscillating between extremely sensitive and borderline traumatized," he wrote. "The last place I wanted to be was Frostnipistan. "I'd been trying some home remedies, including one recommended by a friend. She'd urged me to apply Elizabeth Arden cream. My mum used that on her lips. 'You want me to put that on my todger?' "'It works, Harry. Trust me.' I found a tube, and the minute I opened it, the smell transported me through time. I felt as if my mother was right there in the room. "Then I took a smidge and applied there. 'Weird' doesn't really do the feeling justice." Suffice it to say, the passage attracted the attention of quite a few late-night U.S. comedy shows. 'F****** Grifters' and the Collapse of Spotify Just months later, the Sussexes' Spotify deal collapsed, and just as their team was reassuring journalists the two had parted ways by mutual consent, up popped an executive at the streaming giant to derail the PR strategy. Bill Simmons used his own podcast to fire a parting shot at the couple: "I wish I had been involved in the Meghan and Harry leave Spotify negotiation. 'The F****** Grifters,' that's the podcast we should have launched with them. "I gotta get drunk one night and tell the story of the Zoom I had with Harry, trying to help him with a podcast idea. It's one of my best stories." Meghan a 'Dictator in High Heels' Meghan had long been fending off allegations that she bullied staff at Kensington Palace as a working royal. The scandal migrated to America in September 2024 with an article from The Hollywood Reporter headlined: "Why Hollywood Keeps Quitting on Harry and Meghan." The article quoted a source who said the couple's U.S. staff were terrified of Meghan and that the royal belittled people. Another source said Meghan marched around "like a dictator in high heels," and has reduced grown men to tears. Meghan's team launched a PR counterattack in the pages of Us Weekly, where several past and present staffers praised her. She has consistently denied the allegations of bullying. Prince Harry's ESPY Award In 2024, Prince Harry was awarded the ESPY's Pat Tillman Award for Service, sparking a major backlash from sports fans. At its peak, Mary Tillman, Pat's mother, told The Mail on Sunday: "I am shocked as to why they would select such a controversial and divisive individual to receive the award. There are recipients that are far more fitting." 'South Park' and the 'Worldwide Privacy Tour' Harry's memoir sparked a collapse in the couple's U.S. approval rating, and in the same way that a picture can tell a thousand words, an episode of South Park ridiculing the duke and duchess appeared to tell the story of a shift in American perceptions. The episode, titled "The Worldwide Privacy Tour," depicted the "Prince and Princess of Canada" campaigning for their privacy in the aftermath of the death of the "Queen of Canada." In one scene, the couple appears on a fictional Canadian morning show, holding "We Want Privacy" placards. The anchor asks the prince: "Let me start with you, sir. You lived a life with the royal family, you had everything handed to you but you say your life has been hard and now you've written all about it in your new book: Waaagh." The princess said: "I was totally like, 'You should write a book 'cause your family's, like, stupid and then so are, like, journalists." The interviewer says, "So you hate journalists? And now you wrote a book that reports on the lives of the royal family? So, you're a journalist." Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page. Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@ We'd love to hear from you.
