What: Weird: The Al Yankovic Story
Premiere date: November 4, 2022
It’s high time to admit that “Weird Al” Yankovic is a true musical icon. Whether you’ve been a fan since the early days of “Eat It” or you’re a more recent fan thanks to Stranger Things, you can’t deny the musician’s impact on pop culture over the past, oh, forty years. What’s more, director Eric Appel’s satirical biopic promises to add even more pizazz to his lavish legacy.
So if you’re ready to get into an entirely unreal but definitely hilarious recount of Yankovic’s life, here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming flick.
How can I watch Weird: The Al Yankovic Story?
The film is exclusively streaming on The Roku Channel for free starting Nov. 4.
Is Weird: The Al Yankovic Story actually a biopic?
Yes, but also no. The film is loosely based on Yankovic’s life, but the screenplay — which was co-written by Yankovic himself — is more concerned with poking fun at the tropes directors rely on for musical biopics and shows like Behind the Music. Starring a bewigged Daniel Radcliffe, Weird is a fun, amped-up retelling of Yankovic’s life, from the first moment he laid eyes on an accordion, all the way to his “friendship” with Madonna, with every detail purposefully exaggerated for comedic effect.
The cast includes Evan Rachel Wood as Madonna, Rainn Wilson as Dr. Demento, Quinta Brunson as Oprah, and Toby Huss and Julianne Nicholson as his parents, along with a whole smorgasbord of blink-and-you’ll-miss-them cameos. Yankovic, who also has a cameo, provides the vocals for Radcliffe’s musical scenes.
What are people saying about the film?
In anticipation of the film’s premiere at TIFF, Mashable’s own Kristy Puchko asks, “Who better to take the prestigious subgenre of musician biopic down a peg than the (polka) king of parody?” Puchko also praises Radcliffe’s career, noting that he’s used his “post-Potter years to make such mad and brilliant comedies [like] Swiss Army Man and Miracle Workers,” making him the perfect pick to “play the notoriously squeaky clean accordion player as a vicious, sex-crazed ego maniac.”
To watch Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, subscribe to The Roku Channel for free by clicking that button below.
