Joel Kim: Last News

Andrew Ahn has the fall of Quibi to thank for being the director of “Fire Island.”

Bowen Yang perform a cover of Britney Spears’ “Sometimes” in the Hulu film . In true romcom fashion, the actor gets to bear all his emotions during a pivotal musical moment.While speaking to ET, writer and star Joel Kim Booster and director Andrew Ahn break down the epic moment. “It’s my favorite scene in the movie, for sure,” Booster says.As Howie, Yang takes the stage three quarters of the way through Booster’s queer, modern adaptation of to sing an unexpected version of the 1999 hit song while his friends, Luke (Matt Rogers) and Keegan (Tomás Matos), provide backup and add a little choreography to the scene. The scene comes near the end of their trip to the gay mecca as the limits of Howie and Noah’s (Booster) friendship have been tested by their unexpected and complicated romantic feelings for Charlie (James Scully) and Will (Conrad Ricamora), respectively.  When it comes to the song selection, “it was Bowen’s choice,” Booster says, explaining that the scene itself “was always written into this script [and] that Bowen would sing karaoke in that moment.” He adds, “I asked Bowen for a list of songs he’d be comfortable singing and ‘Sometimes’ was sort of the top choice.

Michael Appler On Wednesday evening in New York City — about 60 miles and a ferry ride away from its subject— “Fire Island,” Joel Kim Booster’s romantic comedy about a weekend spent in New York’s chosen queer haven, held its premiere at the SVA Theatre.On 23rd Street in Chelsea, guests including Alok Viad-Menon, Jackie Cox, Peppermint and John Cameron Mitchell, as well as stars Bowen Yang, Matt Rogers, Conrad Ricamora and James Scully assembled to celebrate the film as part of New York’s NewFest Pride. You could have lifted the premiere’s guest list from any summer weekend spent at the Pines, something to be celebrated for a new film distributed by a gatekeeper studio like Searchlight Pictures.

A year into the COVID pandemic, out director Andrew Ahn received the script for Joel Kim Booster’s “Fire Island” and knew almost immediately he needed to make it.

. The NBC sketch comedy series said goodbye to four longtime cast members -- Aidy Bryant, Kate McKinnon, Kyle Mooney and Pete Davidson -- who all made their last appearance during the season 47 finale. While speaking with ET's Denny Directo about his new film,, breakout star Bowen Yang said that the last day on set “was so emotional.” “It is just these four people who have defined what that show is in the last decade,” he continued, referring to the fact that McKinnon had been on the show for 11 seasons, while Bryant had been on for 10, Mooney for nine and Davidson for eight.He went on to explain that the cast members were “distinct presences, distinct voices and four people who were sort of the best to ever do it.” For Yang, who just completed his second season as an on-air cast member after first joining as a writer in 2018, this will mark the first time they haven’t been around during his brief tenure.

 and dropping weekly, plus Season 2 of , and the new Sundance award-winning dramedy, . An Apple TV+ costs $5/month, or it's free for three months when you purchase an eligible Apple device. New subscribers can try Apple TV+ free for seven days. Try Apple TV+ for FreeCheck out the latest titles to land on Apple TV+ below. Looking for more great TV and movie recommendations? Be sure to check out the rest of our streaming guides to find out what’s new on Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu and more. Here’s what’s new on Apple TV+ this month:This dark comedy stars Rose Byrne as an unhappy housewife in the '80s who struggles daily with her inner critic.

Peter Debruge Chief Film CriticIt’s a gross oversimplification of Jane Austen’s gift to suggest that her novels reduce to heteronormative matchmaking exercises, though all six end with their heroines getting hitched. (Austen herself never wed.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorWelcome to this week’s “Just for Variety.”Searchlight Pictures’ “Fire Island” doesn’t come out until June, but Matt Rogers, who plays Luke in the queer rom- com, has high hopes that it launches a big gay franchise.Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang star as friends who head to the iconic LGBTQ vacation locale ready to have the best summer of their lives. “‘Provincetown’ should be the sequel,” Rogers told me at the premiere of his Showtime show “I Love That for You.” “Let’s do ‘Palm Springs.’ Let’s do ‘Puerto Vallarta.’ This is going to be the ‘Fast & Furious for queers!”Then Rogers, who co-hosts the “Las Culturistas” podcast with Yang, cracks, “I’m the Michelle Rodriguez of the bunch, baby.” As I was the first to report, “Fire Island” will world premiere on June 2 at NewFest Pride in NYC.

Holiday getaways aren’t always easy.

Netflix announced today that Joel Kim Booster’s stand-up special Joel Kim Booster: Psychosexual will debut on the streamer on June 21st.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorSearchlight Pictures’ queer romantic comedy “Fire Island” will have its world premiere on June 2 during NewFest’s NewFest Pride series.“We are thrilled to kick off our annual Pride month event with the world premiere of Andrew Ahn’s ‘Fire Island,’” NewFest executive director David Hatkoff said in statement on Thursday morning. “This joyful film captures the sexy, romantic, celebratory energy of the iconic NY gay enclave, and we can’t wait to celebrate with the film’s cast and creative team with a blow-out, prideful event in the heart of NYC.”Set in Fire Island, New York’s popular gay getaway Pines neighborhood and inspired by Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” the film stars Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang as best friends who are determined to have the ultimate summer adventure.

Wilson Chapman editorHulu has released the first trailer for the new queer rom-com “Fire Island,” starring Joel Kim Booster and “Saturday Night Live” star Bowen Yang.A modern take on the classic Jane Austen novel “Pride and Prejudice,” “Fire Island” focuses on two gay best friends, Noah (Booster) and Howie (Yang), who take a trip to the Pines, a hamlet on New York’s Fire Island that’s a hotspot for queer culture. Over the course of their vacation, they party with friends and develop flirtations with two other, significantly wealthier vacationers, Will (Conrad Ricamora) and Charlie (James Scully).

If you live on the East Coast and are remotely queer-friendly or gay-savvy, you know that Fire Island outside of New York is a destination for gay culture in the summers. And that vacation setting is exactly the environment for “Fire Island,” a new Searchlight Pictures rom-com arriving on Hulu this summer.

Maya Rudolph is starting over.The actress leads Apple TV+'s new workplace comedy series, , which launches with its first three episodes Friday, June 24. Subsequent episodes will drop weekly on Fridays.The 10-episode series, which hails from Alan Yang () and Matt Hubbard (), also stars Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Ron Funches, Nat Faxon and Joel Kim Booster.It follows billionaire Molly Novak (Rudoph), who seemingly has the dream life, complete with private jets, a sprawling mansion and a gigayacht. But when her husband of 20 years betrays her, she spirals publicly, becoming fuel for tabloid fodder.

Sasha Urban editorWith a little more than two months to go until the release of “Fire Island,” a rom-com that Joel Kim Booster wrote as a gay adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” prospective fans are asking, “Where’s the trailer?” Although Booster says he’s asking the same question, he hinted at what audiences can expect from the film, trailer notwithstanding.Speaking to Variety at the premiere of “The Lost City” at the Regency Village Theatre on March 21, where Booster accompanied his friend and “Fire Island” co-star Bowen Yang onto the carpet, Booster said he expects people to see Yang as a “legitimate powerhouse actor” after watching the film.“I’m really excited for people to see Bowen, specifically, because I think everybody’s used to seeing Bowen do things like [‘The Lost City’] or ‘SNL,’” Booster said. “But Bowen really goes to some difficult places in the movie.” Directed by Andrew Ahn, the film stars Booster and Yang as two best friends on a weeklong summer vacation on Fire Island, the mecca of gay summer getaways.

Sarah Silverman and Seth Rogen are voicing characters in HBO Max’s naughty new animated TV series. 

Danielle Turchiano Senior Features Editor, TVHBO Max’s “Santa Inc” is set for a Dec. 2 premiere, with Leslie Grossman, Gabourey Sidibe, Craig Robinson, Nicholas Braun, Maria Bamford, Joel Kim Booster added to the cast, Variety has learned exclusively.“Santa Inc” is an adult stop-motion animated holiday series that consists of eight episodes (all of which will be released at once) and stars Seth Rogen as Santa and Sarah Silverman as an intrepid elf named Candy Smalls who is currently the No.

Bowen Yang is throwing his Emmy support behind his “Saturday Night Live” co-star Kenan Thompson.

EXCLUSIVE: Conrad Ricamora (The Resident), James Scully (You), Matt Rogers (Search Party), Tomas Matos (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Torian Miller (Goliath), and Nick Adams (Shrill) have joined the cast of Fire Island, the Searchlight Pictures title from director Andrew Ahn (Spa Night, Driveways), which has now entered production.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film WriterIt’s surely not her first time, but Margaret Cho is headed to “Fire Island.”The Emmy-nominated actor and comedian has joined the cast of the upcoming Searchlight Studios film opposite Joel Kim Booster and Bowen Yang.

Joe Otterson TV ReporterJoel Kim Booster has joined the upcoming Maya Rudolph-led comedy series at Apple.The untitled series follows Molly (Rudolph), a woman whose seemingly perfect life is upended after her husband leaves her with nothing but 87 billion dollars. Booster will play the role of Nicholas, Molly’s loyal assistant.