After taking Sundance by storm earlier this year, “Late Night” is heading into theaters this summer courtesy of Amazon Studios and should become one of the season’s big comedy hits. The film is the feature screenwriting debut of Mindy Kaling, who broke out as a cast member on “The Office” and went on to create her own beloved series “The Mindy Project” and star in films such as “Ocean’s Eight” and “A Wrinkle in Time.”
“Late Night” stars Emma Thompson as a veteran late night host who decides to hire a female writer (Kaling) to help revitalize her aging talk show. For Kaling’s character, joining the world of late night television means being thrown into the deep end of the patriarchy. “Late Night’s” ensemble cast includes John Lithgow, Hugh Dancy, Reid Scott, Max Casella, John Early, Amy Ryan, and Ike Barinholtz, among others.
In her B+ review out of the Sundance Film Festival, IndieWire’s Kate Erbland raved “Late Night” was a “charming comedy that puts a modern twist on classic laughs.” Erbland continued, “The film smartly sends up not just the cloistered world of late night television, but a current cultural climate struggling to evolve in a changing world…Stuffed with truisms and heart, ‘Late Night’ is also the one thing that any and every late night talk show has to strive for: funny as hell, and with something to say.”
“Late Night” is directed by Nisha Ganatra, best known in the U.S. for directing episodes of high profile series such as “Shameless,” “Girls,” “Better Things,” “Dear White People,” “The Mindy Project,” and “Mr. Robot.” Ganatra also holds co-executive producer credits on seasons of “Transparent” and “Better Things.”
IndieWire’s awards editor Anne Thompson says Emma Thompson is one of the early leading contenders for a Best Supporting Actress nomination. In Thompson’s words: “The role is played with such brio by Oscar-winner Thompson (‘Howard’s End’) that a Supporting Actress nomination should be in the bag, assuming that Amazon turns their $13-million pickup into a summer hit.”
Amazon Studios will open “Late Night” in theaters nationwide June 7. Watch the official trailer in the video below.
