A24 has unveiled the first trailer for The Debut, Jesse Eisenberg‘s directorial follow-up to Oscar winner A Real Pain, where he stars alongside Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti.
Slated for release this fall, The Debut is an R-rated musical comedy centered on Mona Friedman (Moore), who when cast in a bit part at a small community theater, transforms from a shy, unassuming housewife into a zealous method actor willing to do anything to protect the artistic integrity of her marginal role — even if it means waging war against the show’s domineering director (Giamatti).
Seemingly akin to Whiplash for the community theater world, The Debut‘s trailer introduces viewers to Moore’s Mona, who hasn’t sung in front of anyone “since church choir,” yet lands a starring role in a production of Giamatti’s Jerry — “the biggest name in New Jersey community theater.”
Later, a character played by Halle Bailey tells Mona, “Jerry is going to test you, and push you, and drag you through the mud.”
And this proves true, as Jerry tells her, “Every single thing you are doing is not working,” while pushing Mona towards greatness.
Eisenberg appears to play a fellow actor in the community theater troupe.
The Debut reunites Eisenberg with Topic Studios and Fruit Tree, with whom he worked on A Real Pain, as well as Moore, who starred opposite Finn Wolfhard in Eisenberg’s Fruit Tree-produced, A24-released debut feature, When You Finish Saving the World. Eisenberg directed from his own script, with Cara Buono, Craig Bierko, Eldar Isgandarov, and Bernadette Peters rounding out the cast. Pic’s producers are Stone, Dave McCary, Ali Herting, and Eisenberg.
Co-starring Kieran Culkin, who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, Eisenberg’s last film A Real Pain had the multi-hyphenate playing David, who along with mismatched cousin Benji (Culkin), embarks on a journey through Poland to pay tribute to their cherished grandmother. Solidifying Eisenberg’s status as a top-tier director, the dramedy came almost two years after When You Finish Saving the World, which A24 distributed. Searchlight snapped up worldwide rights out of Sundance, where Eisenberg won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award. Eisenberg established himself as a filmmaker after building a lauded acting career, which has included an Oscar nomination for his turn as Mark Zuckerberg in David Fincher’s The Social Network.
Check out the trailer for his new film by clicking above.
