19 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About "Friendship," One Of The F-U-N-N-I-E-S-T Movies I've Seen In A Looooooong Time
And let's just say, if you're a fan of the show I Think You Should Leave, this will be 1000% up your alley because the film feels like an extra-long episode of that show. And it's great, 10/10 would recommend.
Because I enjoy a good deep-dive into things I like, here are some interesting behind-the-scenes facts about the film I just learned:
1.This is writer-director Andrew DeYoung's debut feature film. His previous credits include directing for shows like Our Flag Means Death, Pen15, and Shrill.
2.Although the writing and jokes seem ~very~ Tim Robinson, he was shockingly not a writer (or even co-writer) on it.
3.However, DeYoung says that Tim did come to mind while writing his script. "Thankfully, he said 'yes' when I sent it [the script] to him," he told Entertainment Weekly.
4.DeYoung and Robinson are actually good friends IRL, which maybe explains why DeYoung was able to capture Tim Robinson's comedic voice so well in the film.
5.You might think there was a ton of improv in the film, but apparently, Robinson doesn't like improv. According to DeYoung, they did do it [improv], as Rudd is "exceptional" at it. But while a few things made it into the movie, for the most part what you see was written on the page.
6.Part of DeYoung's inspiration was his own friendship "issues" IRL. He explained, "A few years ago, I had my own Friendship issues that I was trying to resolve, and I realized that I'd never seen a breakup story about two middle-aged men. It's something that's happening all the time. It's tragic but it's also deeply funny."
7.And interestingly, DeYoung wrote the script in 2020 during the pandemic.
8.Another surprising inspiration for the film was actually Paul Thomas Anderson's film The Master — a dramatic story about a guru who becomes dangerously entangled with one of his acolytes.
9.And Robinson was immediately on board with that concept. DeYoung said, "When I finished the Friendship screenplay, I told Tim that I had written it for him and that I wanted to shoot the story like it was The Master. He got right back to me and just said, 'Great, let's do it.'"
10.Originally, the supporting role of Austin was a smaller part, which DeYoung says "made attracting talent trickier than expected."
11.And the part of Austin was actually rewritten for Paul Rudd. DeYoung explained, "It [the script] got to Paul Rudd, and it was just clear how amazing that would be."
12.In fact, Paul Rudd's character was originally named Brian. But then Rudd pointed out that "Brian" was the name of his character in Anchorman, who is ALSO a news guy.
13.And it was Paul Rudd who pitched the name "Austin" instead of Brian.
14.As for the role of Tami, played by Kate Mara, DeYoung wanted Robinson to act against someone not traditionally known for comedy.
15.In fact, Mara was one of the first people pitched to DeYoung. He told Entertainment Weekly, "I met her and immediately was like, 'Yeah, you're perfect. Let's do this.'"
16."Spiritual emptiness" is a theme DeYoung wanted to really emphasize in the film saying that in today's society, "capital has replaced religion." He continued, "I wanted to point to that, and to the almost religious grasp that companies like Marvel have on our culture."
17.Echoing that empty feeling, they actually filmed in ice-cold weather — upstate New York in January and February for 23 days.
18.And, despite the film being a comedy, DeYoung didn't want the audience to feel "safe or settled."
19.Finally, to emphasize that uneasy feeling, the filmmakers used as much natural lighting as possible. In fact, they took inspiration from the 2018 psychological thriller Burning. In particular, they looked to a scene where the characters in that film are sitting outside at sunset. "We were reaching for something similar and to bring it into a comedy, where everybody's guard is down," said DeYoung.
Friendship opens in theaters on May 9. And if you wanna see more, you can check out the official trailer here:
Unless otherwise noted, facts were sourced from the film's production notes.
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He gave me the I'm not ready for a relationship excuse and ghosted me. I ended up hurt and still hurt." —poeticqueen964 10."My theory is that men and women can be friends so long as neither party is at all attracted to the other. If there's attraction on either side, it gets tricky." —sm819181 11."I have a few male pals. I had to set a boundary early on, and the few male friends that I have respect that. A LOT of men do not respect the boundaries I set, and it's truthfully sooooo annoying, but I'm glad I found the few that I did." —nastylight 12."As someone who was bullied in school, I had a few female friends who would help me through the pain and just talk about what I was going through in ways that my guy friends wouldn't understand, and just usually disappear. I am always grateful for their advice and friendship. As I've gotten older, I have come to appreciate and admire women that much more because of how well they can handle literally anything. My wife is an amazing badass and is truly my best friend. I know it's a cliché to say I get along with women better than men, but it's really not difficult to just show respect, care, and kindness and to simply be a friend." —dukerigali 13."We could be friends if males kept their legs closed for once and saw women as actual human beings with boundaries instead of sexual objects." —itsbrooklynct 14."As a gay man, all my close friends are women because there is no sexual attraction between us. On the other hand, I cannot have platonic relationships with men because there is always sexual tension." —Anonymous, 42 Los Angeles 15."Every single one of my close friends since junior high has been a woman. I always clicked with them more than my male friends. I was so close with my BFF in high school, and I became so close with her parents that by grade 12, they were okay with me sleeping over at times. We never once did anything romantic. We were just friends, as we are to this day. 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IDK if everyone needs this hard and fast rule; however, if you're 'hot,' the reality is a lot of people will want more than platonic interactions with you." "For me, accepting that reality is the first step to figuring out what will work for you in terms of interacting with people you could theoretically get romantic with, assuming mutual interest. I'd also say the extent of things matters — if they approach things respectfully and can handle rejection and not be weird moving forward, the relationship can be salvaged. However, a lot of people (straight men are not alone in this) cannot do that, and I'd assume she's had enough negative experiences where she felt she had to institute this rule for herself. Basically, it all depends on how you are as a person, and if this makes sense to you, it's probably for good reason." —Anonymous, 33; Washington, DC 24."I've always had more guy friends than girls. I find different but equal merit in both. However, I was raised by a single dad and have two brothers. I've been happily with my husband for 16 years. They all have platonic close female friends. What I'm saying is that we're all different, and that's okay." —bran230 25."At a sports bar, sitting alone at the bar with wings and beer watching an NBA playoff game, a man sits down, leaving a seat in between us, and after my reactions to the game, strikes up a conversation. At halftime, he flashed his wedding ring and asked if I was 'into that' and 'if I'd want to meet in the bathroom.' I said absolutely not, and luckily, the bartender saw the whole thing and asked him to leave. Another time at a networking event, I connected with a man over potential business ideas and raising capital. It went from just general conversations about business and everyday pleasantries to sending me a link to crotchless panties on Valentine's Day out of nowhere. 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Then it became hard to find someone because I prioritized brains and a good partnership over looks and intimacy. My guy friend group is still active, and 20+ years later, we have seen each other grow, been open about romances, etc. Our unspoken rule is that we prioritize friendship over romance. If we ever decide to date each other, we will prioritize our friendship over whatever happens in our romantic relationships, and it has worked (the other girl and one of the guys dated for a year, didn't work out, but they still see each other constantly)." —Anonymous 28."My issue isn't that all my straight male friends hit on me (which I'm realizing is a bit of an ego check 🤣) but that I will never be able to adjust my expectations from my female friendships and not feel disappointed by their general lack of empathy, compassion, and inability to show loyalty to anyone without a dick." —sharpbubble153 29."I have two male friends: Ethan and Pepe. 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It's not about gender or a lack of sexual attraction or feelings; it's kindness and trust, and affection that create friendships." —skimdog841 31."As a 70+-year-old woman, I've had many male (heterosexual) friends in my lifetime, and there has never been any sexual attraction between us i.e., we are just friends." —moniquechandra 32."I have had a lot of straight male friends throughout my life. For the most part, it has worked out well. I think a bit of mutual sexual tension is normal and expected in these relationships when you are both straight and genuinely like each other. You just have to anticipate it and either ignore it or work through it platonically. I have certainly known men, mostly when I was younger, whose motivation within the friendship was to get out of the friend zone, and a few stepped way over the line. But I have had a lot of long-term platonic relationships with men that are rewarding, if occasionally a bit uncomfortable. Worth it." —oddunicorn733 33."Guys will often shoot their shot with any attractive woman who is nice to them, but if they learn that she says it's a no-go, most of the time that will be enough for them to back off and stop going after her as a possible romantic interest." —hwh 34."I am very lucky in that my best friend is a straight man, and it's never been anything other than a very close friendship. He has never once ever made me feel even the tiniest bit like he may want something more or sees me as anything other than a friend. I think he's a very rare gem because I've never experienced this with any other straight men — just him." —bmoney1212 35."I have exactly two male friends, one I met at school and the other I met at work. Both predate my spouse by many years. 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In fact, many straight men only notice a woman if they find her attractive. I personally think it's an interesting way to see if it'll help some of our internalized misogyny." —meg82461 Do you think friends who could be attracted to each other (straight, gay, bisexual, etc.) can actually be platonic? Share your thoughts in the comments or use this anonymous form.
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