If you’re in the US, Bradley Cooper’s new movie Is This Thing On? hits theaters today (December 19). It’s his third movie as a director – following A Star Is Born and Maestro – but his first with a real-life inspiration.
Those of us in the UK who are fans of the international comedy circuit likely knew this already. The story is loosely based on the life of Liverpudlian comic John Bishop, who began performing stand-up as something to do after splitting up from his wife.
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“No, not really. I’m sure it would make a great film… it would make a different film,” Chappell tells me when I ask about a potential John Bishop biopic. “It was always going to have Will in it, and there was never any question that he was going to attempt to do John Bishop .
“Perversely, I regret that. I’d have liked to have seen what that turned out like, but creatively it was probably the right decision.”
But why John at all? “It’s such a lovely story,” Arnett adds. “I met John by chance through a mutual friend on a barge in Amsterdam. That’s a true story! So when he told me how he started in stand-up and what he did for his own life, it sounded like a great story that needed to be told.
“Mark and I started writing, and then we went to Bradley. When I sent him the script, he said he wanted to direct it, and he came to work on it with us. Bradley took us in such an incredible new direction.”
Annoyingly, fans in the UK and Australia will have to wait until January 30, 2026 to catch up with the trio’s take on Bishop’s like, but it’s well worth the wait.
Frankly, it’s exactly the time of year when we need something life-affirming, and I’m still thinking about Is This Thing On? over two months after seeing it.
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