In addition to being the world’s most famous film critic, Roger Ebert also wrote the screenplay for B-movie king Russ Meyer’s X-rated 1970 film, Beyond The Valley of the Dolls. Ebert and Meyer are the subject of Michael Winterbottom’s new film, Russ & Roger, which had Will Ferrell attached to play Meyer. Now, according to Variety, Josh Gad has closed a deal to play Ebert. It’s all part of our ongoing coverage, Everything’s Comin’ Up Josh Gad.
A debauched comedy in which truth is crazier than fiction, the film is an outrageous look at two no-holds-barred outsiders who defied the Hollywood establishment to make one of the first X-rated films ever released by a major movie studio (“Beyond the Valley of the Dolls”) — having the party of a lifetime in the process.
The script was penned by Emmy-winning “Saturday Night Live” and “The Simpsons” scribe Christopher Cluess, with Winterbottom, Neil Gibbons and Rob Gibbons doing a polish.
How is Josh Gad EVERYWHERE? Mike Nichols dies? Josh Gad is there (to compare him to Bill Cosby, for some reason). Robin Williams dies? Josh Gad is there. Jon Stewart retires? Josh Gad is there. WHY IS JOSH GAD ALWAYS THERE? Almost every picture I see of Josh Gad inevitably makes me want to scream “HE DOESN’T EVEN GO HERE!” at my laptop like Mean Girls.
I hate even asking about Josh Gad because I know some jackass is inevitably going to pipe up “Well, he was great in Book of Mormon.” As if that alone is sufficient to explain why Josh Gad parachutes in every time a celebrity dies or a biopic needs a chubby guy. The only thing I can think of is that Josh Gad’s mom is friends with everyone in Hollywood’s mom and so they have to play with him.