Imagine Rebel Wilson adapting the ubiquitous Steve Buscemi/30 Rock “How do you do fellow kids?” meme into a movie (with shades of Never Been Kissed and Bring It On) and that’s the easiest way to boil down Netflix’s upcoming Senior Year.
And that’s a sales pitch, not a diss. Hollywood’s never been anything if not derivative.
The first NSFW trailer for Wilson’s R-rated comedy is heavy on laughs, a good sign for the May 13 release looking to join the ranks of high school favorites like Clueless and Mean Girls.
Wilson plays Stephanie Conway, who as a teenager (Angourie Rice) was cheerleading captain/most popular girl in school until a devastating fall landed her in a long coma. Waking up 20 years later, the now-37-year-old Stephanie is determined to return to high school and continue right where she left off. Fish-out-of-water hijinks inevitably ensue as Stephanie must catch up with the times (“Madonna’s now called ‘Lady Gaga?'” she asks her parents while looking at a Rolling Stone cover).
After a busy 2019 that included the releases of her rom-com star vehicle Isn’t It Romantic, the Anne Hathaway-co-starring Dirty Rotten Scoundrels rework Hustlers, the Oscar-contending comedic drama Jojo Rabbit and the-less-said-about-it-the-better Cats, Senior Year marks Wilson’s first movie in three years.
Not that the Aussie star has been MIA lately. She’s hosted two reality shows Down Under (the dog grooming competition Pooch Perfect and the comedian clash LOL: Australia) and appeared on an episode of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? And of course, there’s also been the never-ending headlines about Wilson’s highly publicized weight loss.
Behind Wilson, Senior Year boasts an impressive supporting cast, including Sam Richardson and Zoë Chao, who just had phenomenal chemistry in Apple TV+’s critical hit, The Afterparty. Other costars include Justin Hartley (This Is Us), Mary Holland (one of Yahoo’s breakout stars of 2020 for her scene-stealing turn in Happiest Season), Chris Parnell (speaking of 30 Rock) and Alicia Silverstone (speaking of Clueless).
Senior Year is directed by Alex Hardcastle (New Girl, The Mindy Project, The Office) from a script by Andrew Knauer, Arthur Pielli and Brandon Scott Jones. The film premieres on Netflix on May 13.
