A New Kind of Trilogy
The Story
Production
SuperDude The Movie is an idea for a spin-off comedy film to be the pseudo-sequel of This Is 40, Knocked Up and Pineapple Express rolled into one. The plan is that writer/director Judd Apatow reprises Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann’s roles as the classic American family from This Is 40 and reconnects them with Seth Rogen’s character from the 2011 film Knocked Up. SuperDude creates a new twist to film sequels that illustrates Apatow’s comedic vision and creativity, while showing the public the importance of engaging in political discourse.
After losing his job, Pete (Paul Rudd) becomes the stay-at-home dad while his wife Debbie (Leslie Mann) works as the breadwinner. Once he’s re-introduced to leisure marijuana smoking by his poker buddies (Seth Rogen, Woody Harrelson, Adam Sandler), Pete comes to recognize the possibilities that cannabis has to offer, both medicinally and economically. As he learns the ups and downs of marijuana prohibition with his wife and daughters (Maude and Iris Apatow), he must figure out what’s best for him, his family, and the greater good… all while maintaining his suburban social status and being a role-model for his kids.
What emerges is a deeply honest portrait of the average family who is torn between the outdated laws and stigmatism of marijuana and the internet-age and stale politics of 2021. From Apatow's lens, we follow a typical American family’s navigation through father & daughter hardships, financial struggles, marriage compromises, addictions, and the real comparisons between cannabis and alcohol.
The all-star dream cast represents an ensemble of actors from many of Apatow’s previous projects, but as of January 2021- this entire film is still just a decade old dream of a guy named Josh, from Northwest Michigan. Josh's goal is to pitch the story to Judd in hopes of pursuing a collaboration to complete the script together. You can help Josh pursue his dream by sharing this website on social media, or better yet- have Judd or Seth or Evan or anyone connected to Apatow Productions contact Josh here.
The film begins with Pete (Paul Rudd), enjoying his daily work routine with co-workers, only to be informed at a lunch meeting with his boss that he is being laid off. His wife Debbie (Leslie Mann) is able to take over the role of family breadwinner, with her recent success in opening a new business after moving to Detroit from California. Pete is now in charge of maintaining house duties in their modest suburban while sharing space with Charlotte (Iris Apatow), a high school senior, and Sadie (Maude Apatow), who is living at home during a work internship. Without a hectic work schedule, Pete now has more personal time and is able to expand his social circles with former co-workers and his brother-in-law, Ben Stone (Seth Rogen) who had connected Pete with a job after moving the family to Detroit a year earlier for “employment opportunities”. At the first poker night back with his buddies (including Adam Sandler and Woody Harrelson), he is introduced to recreational marijuana smoking and is pleasantly surprised at the potency and the overall experience he has without getting drunk or having a usual hangover.
After Ben gifts him a bud to take home and experiment with at his own leisure, Pete finds himself enjoying the benefits of partaking while maintaining his new role as nanny. He never smokes before the family’s usual morning routine of eating breakfast on-the-go, and maintaining organized chaos in the hectic paths of three females; however, he does find pleasure in a calming toke before doing house chores and re-listening to the entire list of Rolling Stones Top 100 Albums. He continues smoking at poker nights and having deep conversations about how the “pot stigma” has evolved over the years and experiences the benefits of marijuana outweighing alcohol. His comrades still enjoy their beer, whiskey, and cigars when they’re out on the town, but Pete recognizes how much he is starting to prefer marijuana over other vices. He enjoys several outings with his friends smoking marijuana rather than drinking alcohol, including a Tigers baseball game followed by a night at the casino and a hilarious day trip to the zoo with Ben.
Ben invites Pete to his house in the suburbs, but this time shows Pete the secret grow operation in his garage. Pete gets a full tour and begins to see the legitimacy of Ben’s business operation, and accepts Ben’s offer for part-time work to make some extra cash as he looks for a job. As Pete’s attention becomes focused on his new hobby and nights out with the guys, Charlotte starts to take advantage of the lackadaisical scheduling by getting high with her friends, while Debbie works out of town and Sadie spends the weekends at her boyfriends .
Pete learns more about the business of marijuana from Ben and his grow crew (James Franco and Danny McBride), including its history of prohibition, processing, and distribution of the product. After meeting some of Ben’s patients, Pete comes to the realization that everyone consumes cannabis in some form. While out on his own delivery assignment, Pete has a close call when he makes a pitstop at the DMV and is nearly busted by a security officer (Craig Robinson) who smells the marijuana on Pete’s clothes, but confronts the moppy-headed kid sitting next to him. After befriending the kid and “talking weed lingo” moments before the altercation, Pete vehemently lies and denies the kid's claims that Pete is the one who smells like weed, despite having a car full of cannabis planned for delivery.
Debbie returns from her trip and is frustrated with Charlotte's school detention and the family’s overall vibe, so she decides it’s time to visit Pete’s mother, Grammy (Susan Sarandon), in Northern Michigan. Besides the family enjoying relaxing time on the farm, Pete and Debbie find out that Grammy smokes marijuana to help her with her back pain and insists Pete become a medical cannabis cardholder. Learning of the visit, there’s an impromptu class reunion (including Doug Benson) in the garage that night- telling stories and sharing a buzz. Pete also learns that his cousin Jackie (Maya Rudolph) has been diagnosed with cancer and he promises to find a strain that can help. On their way back to Detroit, the family is pulled over and the car is searched. Debbie is patient while Charlotte plays the antagonist and sasses the officer repeatedly about being redneck and questioning his abilities. Pete has a private conversation with the officer after they find a small pipe in the vehicle, but is given a warning and sent on their way.
Upon returning to the city, Pete receives his caregiver card and starts his own lab to research, clone, and create a “super” strain in the unfinished room in their family basement. He experiments with some of the extra treats he and Charlotte make for her class by adding weed butter after she leaves for school. Pete visits Jackie who has a stack of High Time magazines, has watched countless YouTube videos and got the green light from her doctor to experiment. To Pete’s resistance, she insists on buying the product which he has named “SuperDude” and even printed a label with the Detroit Tiger logo drawn inside the Superman logo diamond. The results are positive with Jackie, but Pete starts feeling paranoid after seeing the cops watch him in Northern Michigan and also near his home in Detroit.
One day, Charlotte gets in trouble at school for suspicion of possessing marijuana candy. Debbie and Pete take her home after a meeting with the principal (Steve Carell) and find out it was one of Pete’s creations and that both girls have known all along. After the initial shock, the family has a heart-to-heart conversation about marijuana, its pros and cons, Pete’s caregiving operation, and why it’s better for kids to wait until their brains are developed before using any drugs. The beans are spilled- Debbie admits to being a closet smoker with a friend from work (Amy Schumer), and also that the girls know a lot more about drugs than the parents imagined, similar to when they had the “birds and bees” talk.
After getting home, Debbie storms into Pete’s grow room and lays into him about the gravity of the situation and the negative effect marijuana is having on the family. Sadie shows up at the door of the grow room and says there are police knocking on the front door. Pete and his family try to explain that he is properly licensed and not breaking any laws as he is handcuffed and escorted to the police car. Neighbors watch as he looks from the backseat while cops confiscate all his plants and growing supplies.
Later that night, Debbie bails Pete out of jail and they walk in the door at home to hugs from supportive family and friends, all of which learned about the incident after Charlotte made his Dad famous on social media by posting his arrest video. Pete is grateful but pessimistic. The next day, Pete’s attitude shifts as the story goes viral and he is bombarded by people’s support- neighbors giving him thumbs up when he drives by, his poker buddies donating their winnings to help with bail, and even the principal sending a gift box of Twinkies and Vernors.
On the day of his sentencing, there are cameras and reporters gathered at the courthouse, as the court case will set precedent to 40 other pending cases regarding growing, processing and distributing marijuana as legal medicine in the State of Michigan. The courtroom is packed and the prosecutor makes a harsh and outdated claim about the negative effects of marijuana on society, pointing at Pete like he’s Public Enemy #1. Pete replies with a heartfelt and honest version of his experience, including the dangers and potential for addiction, but also the immeasurable positive impacts it can have for casual and medicinal reasons.
Just as the judge is about to declare his decision, Pete hears Debbie calling his name over and over and realizes it was all a dream. When he opens his eyes and sees Debbie, his notebook is on his chest with the SuperDude logo drawn in it. When Pete tells her she won’t believe the dream he had, she replies, “That’s super dude, now go get a job!”
Cast
Paul Rudd as Pete, Debbie's unemployed husband
Leslie Mann as Debbie, Pete's wife and a shop owner
Seth Rogen as Ben, Debbie and Pete’s ex-brother-in-law
Maude Apatow as Sadie, Pete and Debbie's 23 year old daughter
Iris Apatow as Charlotte, Pete and Debbie's 18 year old daughter
Susan Sarandon as Grammy, Pete’s mother
Adam Sandler, Pete’s ex-coworker and poker buddy
Woody Harrelson, Pete's poker buddy
Other characters:
James Franco, Ben’s employee
Danny McBride, Ben’s employee
Maya Rudolph as Jackie, Pete's cousin
Amy Schumer as Angie, Debbie’s co-worker
Craig Robinson, DMV security guard
Albert Brooks as Larry, Pete's father
John Lithgow as Oliver, Debbie's father
Cheech Marin, Pete’s boss
Tommy Chong, casino dealer
Steve Carell, Sadie's principal
Doug Benson, Pete’s high school buddy
TBD by social media voting on April 20th of 2021, Pete and Ben’s poker buddies
Casting
Casting is not confirmed, but several of the major cast members could return from previous Judd Apatow projects: Paul Rudd shared the lead role in This Is 40, along with other films Apatow directed including Anchorman 2: TheLegend of Ron Burgundy, Knocked Up and The 40 Year Old Virgin. Leslie Mann, who also starred in This Is 40 and Knocked Up, is married to Apatow and their two daughters play her children through the entire trilogy, first appearing in Knocked Up in elementary school and now in SuperDude as high schoolers. Seth Rogan and James Franco both starred in the short-lived, cult television series Freaks and Geeks which Apatow produced, and both co-starred in Pineapple Express which Apatow produced and wrote . Michael Cera and Danny McBride have both appeared in Apatow’s productions, and Amy Schumer won the Critics' Choice Award as Best Actress in a Comedy for her role in the 2015 romantic comedy Trainwreck. Adam Sandler, Susan Sarandon, Woody Harrelson, Craig Robinson, Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong and Doug Benson are all on the short list of potential cast members.
Casting contest
In the spring of 2021, there could be a voting contest to select additional cast members to be selected as Pete's poker buddies. Some of the potential cast members listed have existing relationships with Apatow and Rogen, but a social media casting contest would be a simple and grassroots way to promote the movie.
Pseudo-Trilogy Design
Director Judd Apatow has been considering a pseudo-sequel film similar to SuperDude since the release of This is 40. During an interview on March 30, 2013 with Getty Images Entertainment (via Hey U Guys), Apatow was questioned about the prospect of a sequel to This Is 40. He admitted to being intrigued by the idea. “Yes… because I like the series that Francois Truffaut made (The 400 Blows) where he revisited the same character five different times in five different movies. I think it’s fun to see people grow up. I’m interested in it with Leslie (Mann) and Paul (Rudd)’s characters… Pete and Debbie… but I’m even more interested in [Maude and Iris' characters].”[1]
Story Development
The inspiration for creating SuperDude is based on the humor Josh found in This Is 40 combined with Seth Rogen’s bold advocacy of cannabis. “I had the idea after I was laid off from my job in 2009, and it kept evolving over the years, eventually lining up perfectly with the movies that Judd Apatow was making. In 2014,my son tried an attempt at going viral with a picture asking Seth to listen to my movie pitch, but fell 419,500 "likes" short of his goal. I waited an entire year and tried again in 2015, with the use of Twitter, Facebook, and a website- but couldn't dedicate the time necessary to promote the idea. In October of 2016, I changed my outlook. I dropped my pseudo-name (Abe Wright), started distributing SuperDude stickers and paying more attention to Twitter. My only goal is to get Hollywood's attention so I can pitch the idea to Judd Apatow or anyone in the Apatow Productions circle. I've been working at a non-profit the last six years and spent zero time on the project- even with Instagram as a new platform. I decided to re-promote again in January of 2021 during the COVID pandemic in hopes of some social media traction."
Judd's increased activism in national politics, combined with former President Trump's conservative and divisive politics, creates an ideal atmosphere for a social comedy that can impact politics on a large scale.
The film title is partially inspired by the name of the medicinal cannabis strains called Super.The storyline matches what Seth Rogen has said about Apatow’s films, “It’s really funny… a good emotional story that makes sense.”[2]
Release
If the dream comes true, SuperDude would be filmed in Michigan and released in 2022. Total industry revenues for NAICS 512110 Motion picture and video production, was valued at $59.9 billion in 2007.[3] Michael Moore, who has always supported the underdog- particularly with his Michigan brethren- received the first (direct) tweet from Stoltz announcing the film promotion in 2015. As of January 2021, Stoltz continues to promote the idea online in hopes of catching the attention of Hollywood. His only goal is to have a small percentage of the profits be donated to the non-profit community center he works at.
Soundtrack
The original motion picture soundtrack to the film is still in planning. Although Stoltz was hoping for a line-up of Michigan based artists only, including Jack White and Bob Seger, he recognized that the film couldn’t be complete without a Willie Nelson song, who lives in Texas. Also expected to be featured are musicians from Earthwork Music Collective, a Michigan-based record label that includes Joshua Davis (NBC's "The Voice"), The Accidentals (now with Sony Records) and the Go Rounds from Kalamazoo.
Sequel
Stoltz stated that he’s always had an idea for a sequel, but nothing is on paper. He planned that if he wasn’t able to pitch his idea to a big production company, he would create a kids version of the movie, replacing the cast with teenagers who get in trouble with the law and Monsanto for selling organic heirloom tomatoes.
Contact
Josh via Twitter
Josh via Instagram
Josh via his workplace
References
[1] Schaefer, Sandy. "Judd Apatow Planning ‘This Is 40′ Sequel to Complete ‘Knocked Up’ Trilogy".Screen Rant. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
[2] "This is Judd Apatow" interview by Anderson Cooper, produced by Tom Anderson. 60 Minutes. December 30, 2012.
[3] "Industry Statistics Sampler". NAICS 512110 Motion picture and video production. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
External links:
SuperDude Facebook
SuperDude Twitter
SuperDude Instagram
This Is 40 Website
This Is 40 Facebook
Knocked Up Website
Knocked Up Facebook