Why hasn't Jamie Foxx's comedy "All-Star Weekend," which was additionally his directorial debut, been launched?
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Is that this the funniest comedy you’ll by no means see — due to cancel tradition?
In 2016, Jamie Foxx, 54, and Jeremy Piven, 57, began filming “All-Star Weekend,” a film about two NBA-obsessed pals in Indiana. Piven’s character is Steph Curry’s largest fan, whereas Foxx’s worships LeBron James. The pair win tickets to the NBA All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles and on their method out west, they run right into a forged of wacky characters and discover themselves in a harmful state of affairs with their hoop idols.
The premise and the forged, which incorporates Robert Downey Jr., Benicio del Toro, Gerard Butler and Eva Longoria, appear to be a slam dunk. And Foxx, who was making his directorial debut with the film, gave many glowing interviews concerning the venture.
“It’s so related proper now,” Foxx informed the Hollywood Reporter in 2018. “Comedy, proper now, wants a film like ‘All-Star Weekend’ and one thing you haven’t seen earlier than.”
The film was initially slated to be launched throughout the 2018 NBA All-Star Weekend, however was pushed to the 2019 hoops extravaganza due to post-production delays. Then it by no means appeared, and now the movie appears to have been indefinitely shelved.
Final week, Foxx urged the humor was too out of bounds for at the moment’s uptight comedy local weather through which comedians like Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais have landed in sizzling water for jokes which have touched society’s third rails.
“It’s been powerful with the lay of the land on the subject of comedy,” Foxx informed CinemaBlend final week when requested about “All-Star Weekend.”
“We’re attempting to interrupt open the delicate corners the place folks return to laughing once more,” he stated, persevering with to be imprecise concerning the movie’s standing.
Within the envelope-pushing flick, Robert Downey Jr. performs a Mexican man and Foxx performs a “white racist cop.”
Foxx has been vocal concerning the want for provocative comedy. In a 2017 look on Joe Rogan’s podcast, he stated he by no means reads social media feedback as a result of it could stifle his creativity.
“If I learn all of the feedback I might by no means inform one other joke,” he stated. “I bought a film we simply shot for little or nothing, known as ‘All-Star Weekend.’ The jokes are all the way in which on the market … If you happen to learn the feedback, that may make you tuck that in,” he stated, calling the venture “sensible.”
“There's some issues the place you may see ‘ooh,’ you may see there’s some s–t happening,” he stated of the impartial film, which was by no means hooked up to a studio.
In the identical interview he defended Robert Downey Jr. doing blackface within the 2008 Vietnam Battle satire “Tropic Thunder” and stated he urged Downey Jr. play a Mexican individual in “All-Star Weekend.”
“I known as Robert, I stated, ‘I want you to play a Mexican.’ ” He initially agreed, however the “Ironman” star bought chilly ft and texted the Oscar winner saying the function made him nervous.
“I stated, ‘S–t, you performed the black dude and also you killed that s–t.’ We bought to have the ability to do characters.”
The “Tropic Thunder” function earned Downey Jr. an Oscar nomination for greatest supporting actor — and tons of blowback. However he has no regrets. Throughout an interview with Joe Rogan in 2020, Downey Jr. acknowledged the delicacy of the half and that Sean Penn had “probably correctly” turned it down.
“And 90 p.c of my black pals had been like, ‘Dude, that was nice.’ I can’t disagree with [the other 10 percent], however I do know the place my coronary heart lies. I feel that it’s by no means an excuse to do one thing that’s misplaced and out of its time, however to me it blasted the cap on [the issue]. I feel having an ethical psychology is job one. Generally, you simply gotta go, ‘Yeah I effed up.’ In my protection, ‘Tropic Thunder’ is about how incorrect [blackface] is, so I take exception.”
Co-star Piven appeared to counsel the delay wasn’t the possibly offensive materials however Foxx’s perfectionist streak. Throughout a Could look on “Get Some with Gary Owen,” Piven was frank concerning the flick’s future.
“We did a film with Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr. and Benicio del Toro and Gerry Butler and also you’ll by no means see it. Jamie doesn’t wish to launch it.
“And it’s a type of issues the place Foxx might be essentially the most gifted man I’ve ever been round, identified, heard of. He’s the funniest man within the room. He can sing. There’s nothing Foxx can’t do.
“I had the time of my life … Foxx is basically exhausting on himself. He’s certainly one of these dudes, , he desires it to be good, so he’s been holding onto this factor for 5 years.”
Perfectionist or not, comic Luenell, who additionally has an element in “All-Star Weekend,” gave the movie and Foxx a ringing endorsement in 2017.
“Plenty of persons are in it, and it’s a very good function. It’s greater than a cameo. And it’s actually humorous. Jamie doesn’t do junk,” she informed the St. Louis Dispatch.
One other potential wrinkle is timing. When it was initially slated for launch, the film had an ideal real-life basketball peg. Then-Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James and Golden State guard Steph Curry spent 4 years going face to face within the NBA Finals — however the working rivalry got here to an finish with the 2018 sequence.
Shelving a completed movie is a rarity in Hollywood, significantly one with such massive stars. Warner Brothers made headlines earlier this month when The Put up reported the studio was yanking “Batgirl” after it was poorly acquired by audiences at take a look at screenings. Equally, Jerry Lewis insisted his 1972 flick, “The Day the Clown Cried,” by no means see the sunshine of day as a result of the story a couple of clown imprisoned in a Nazi camp was additionally poorly acquired throughout take a look at screenings.
In accordance with Deadline the movie was financed, but it surely’s unclear if traders have been paid again by Foxx.
“All-Star Weekend” producer Avram “Butch” Kaplan stated “no remark” when requested concerning the mysterious delay and Foxx’s representatives didn’t return a name for remark.
“It’s going to be a interval drama by the point they put it out,” added Piven.
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