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This piece was originally published on March 7, 2023 out of the SXSW festival.
We are re-circulating it now timed toSelf Reliancesstreaming debut on Hulu.
People will listen to anything if it comes from a celebrity.
Say youre walking down the street one afternoon.
A limousine pulls over.
Andy Samberg rolls down a window and offers a lift.
Hes holding a sign with your name printed on it.
You get in because its Andy Samberg and hes holding a sign with your name printed on it.
Hell be hunted by ninjalike figures for the next 30 days.
They can kill him only if hes alone.
Survive and hell win $1 million.
Aha, a loophole!
If Tommy surrounds himself with people at all times, theres no way he can lose, right?
Thus launches what Johnson calls a choose your own adventure thrill ride he aptly likens toJacobs LaddermeetsBottle Rocket.
Its meant to be ridiculous but not, like,Dodgeballridiculous.
Maybe the game is real and Tommy is facing a stealthy battle for his life.
Daredevil reality-TV spectacles likeThe Challenge, Survivor,andNaked and Afraidsparked this story in Johnsons mind years ago.
As everybody was alone, all the ideas of this project came together, Johnson says.
It was April of 2020, and the world was shutting down.
Agents and managers were all saying we might never go back to the way it was.
The star power rose in tandem.
Johnson has a sense of whats real, but youre not likely to see him elaborate.
At this point, would that be so shocking?
Samberg, for one, didnt ask Johnson to spell anything out.
That said, I think theyre all dead and its purgatory.
But I do think its fun no matter what the truth of it is.
Thinking any stranger could be an assassin is a pretty unstable way to spend a month.
I believe youre allowed to laugh at any scene you want to, he says.
I dont think theres a sequence that has to be too heavy for you.
But if youre watching it and its heavy for you, youre also right.
You are allowed to enjoy this movie any way you want.
