STACK #192 Oct 2020

FILM FEATURE

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Who is Pete Davidson and why is he so good in Judd Apatow’s new comedy- drama, The King of Staten Island ?

J udd Apatow’s movies generally champion the slacker and serve as vehicles for established comics like Seth Rogen ( Knocked Up ) and Amy Schumer ( Trainwreck ), delivering comedy that’s improvisational, gross-out funny and bittersweet. For his latest film, The King of Staten Island , Apatow’s muse is Saturday Night Live regular and stand-up comic Pete Davidson, who also co-scripted what is essentially a semi- autobiographical story. Davidson was seven years old when he lost his firefighter father to the 9/11 tragedy, and his character Scott Carlin is similarly grappling with the fallout of his dad’s death during a heroic rescue attempt in a burning building. Set in New York’s less trendy borough of the title (the one with the famous ferry), the film explores the impact of grief, PTSD and social withdrawal, while plotting a circuitous road to self-improvement for its floundering protagonist. Davidson had been mulling the possibility of turning elements of his personal experiences into a film, and turned to friend and SNL writer Dave Sirus. The pair agreed to partner up on a script, although neither had written a screenplay before, so the search for an experienced guide began. It was Amy Schumer who had first put Davidson on Apatow’s radar, leading to a cameo role in Trainwreck (2015). “Amy was making me aware of comedians she liked,” Apatow recalls. “And one night she said, ‘You’ve got to see this guy. He’s 19 years old and crazy funny.’ We watched a video of him and knew we had to put him in the movie. “I always want to plant a flag, just so I can say I knew someone was going to be big before anyone else,” he adds dryly. Of his involvement in the co-writing of The King of Staten Island , Apatow says, “Pete and Dave wrote a script for me that didn’t pan out. Then one day, Pete mentioned that he wanted his mom to be in a relationship and to be happy. We started

Kelsey (Bel Powley) and Scott (Pete Davidson)

14 OCTOBER 2020

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