It takes a very special kind of creative team, material and amount of self awareness, to be able to round up some of Hollywood’s biggest names to jump on board a project that aims to poke fun at the most vapid parts of the Hollywood film industry.
However, this so-called feat is a well-practised enterprise for Jewish comedy actor and writer/director, Seth Rogen. Not one to shy from the parody or satire, the subject matter of Rogen’s filmography is bold, outrageous and often daringly self-referential.
Whether considering his 2013 directorial debut, This Is The End, a meta disaster-comedy in which an apocalypse strikes a “real life” Hollywood party, or perhaps his most notorious film, The Interview (2014), the daringly political backdrop of which speared a cyberattack on Sony Pictures and nearly saw the film unreleased, Rogen and his collaborators have definitely showcased a uniquely special brand of unconventional wit.
“This show acts as both a love letter to, as well as a critique of, the Hollywood film industry…”
His next venture however, although still very much steeped in the satirical, takes a more “serious” kind of route in its shaping.
The Studio, a creation of Seth Rogen and longtime collaborator Evan Goldberg, premiered its first two episodes on Apple TV+ to an outpouring of rave reviews, with many quick to call it the “must watch” TV show on streaming.
Detailing fictional studio executive Matt Remick (Rogen), and his appointment as head of Continental Studios, the show follows said Hollywood suit as he tries to make his mark as both an artistically inclined and box office hungry studio head – two things which don’t often intersect according to those around him. In a frantic scramble to make his mark on Hollywood, Remick’s own abilities as studio head are called into question at every turn, which ultimately presents as a shrewd commentary on the insipidity of some of Hollywood’s biggest pursuits, while, quite ironically, making comedic use of a handful of tinseltown’s finest true artists, enter Martin Scorsese as himself.
Featuring an impressive array of Hollywood pros playing inflated versions of themselves, Goldberg told the LA Times; “We wanted it to be as reflective of reality as possible.”
And although quite significantly intensified (a credit to the heavy dialogue and purposely haphazard camera work), the show does feel somewhat grounded by its spate of cameos and references to real-life relevant issues facing the film industry, such as living in a post Barbenheimer era and the race to recreate such a cultural phenomenon that brought in both the big bucks and a flurry of prestigious accolades.
As for the anticipated Jewish themes of the show, Rogen’s character along with many others are quite evidently Jewish (as are many of the shows creators), with many of the characters making conscious statements and jokes indicating their Jewishness.
“It’s an industry largely founded by Jewish people,” Rogen told The Jewish Chronicle, “because Jews were not allowed to work in other industries and movies were really looked down upon and viewed as a kind of garbage industry … and we did great with it.”
It does seem as though Rogen is piling this very sentiment into the satire of it all, poking fun at the Jewishness among Hollywood’s top dogs with a definite air of pride. A minyan joke features in the very first episode.
Rogen credits his own experiences making movies in Hollywood, his love for cinema, and frustration with the industry as inspiration for the show.
And it is clear in its craftsmanship that this show acts as both a love letter to, as well as a critique of, the Hollywood film industry. It seems as though his own reverence for cinema is what has enabled Rogen to bottle his special brand of satirical wit and redress it in a masterful way that uses filmic techniques to advance its sheer hilarity from parody to commentary.
The entirety of the second episode for example, is made to look and feel like one long take, just as its subject matter documents the on-set struggles to produce such a “oner”. This technique is used so artfully that it never feels tiresome, however not for the fainthearted, the episode is bound to feel like a laughing sprint.
Rogen and Goldberg apparently “thought of a hundred episode ideas”, and after last week’s instalment, in which Remick is afraid to give director Ron Howard a simple note on the ending of his film, it seems as though these guys can quite literally make any Hollywood situation into 30 minutes of pure hilarity.
With a brigade of more cameos to come, including the likes of Zac Efron, Zoe Kravitz and Netflix chief Ted Sarandos, there’s bound to be a boatload of laughs still ahead, because as Rogen would like us to remember, it’s always fun to see Hollywood making fun of itself.
The Studio is now streaming on Apple TV+
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