‘Idiots’: Dave Franco Talks Macon Blair’s Gross-Out Comedy, A “Superhero” Diarrhea Shot & His Next Horror Film [Interview]
There is a superhero shot that never was in Macon Blair’s “Idiots,” but nobody is saving the day. The camera is planted low, looking up at Dave Franco just before a practical diarrhea rig erupts from his shorts and completely browns out the lens. Somewhere between the Cocoa Krispies used to give the mess extra texture and Franco’s dainty bird tattoo singing “who farted,” the movie finds its beautifully stupid wavelength. Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr. play two spectacularly unqualified men hired to transport a wealthy, troubled teenage influencer (Mason Thames) to rehab. The job goes bad quickly and keeps finding new depths. Written and directed by Blair, the filmmaker and actor behind “I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore” and “The Toxic Avenger,” the dark road comedy also features Peter Dinklage, Kiernan Shipka, Nicholas Braun, and Killer Mike. It is filthy, violent, oddly sweet, and packed with side characters who seem to have wandered in from their own movies. READ MORE: ‘The Shitheads’ Review: O’Shea Jackson Jr. & Dave Franco Are Riotous Fun In A Chaotic Road Trip Movie [Sundance] The film took the long way to theaters. Blair first approached Franco nearly a decade ago, when both agreed the actor was too young for the part. Eight years later, Franco circled back, joined as a producer, and helped assemble the cast and financing. The movie finally premiered at Sundance as “The Shitheads,” where Independent Film Company acquired it before everyone had to confront the difficulty of marketing a movie with that title.
