Yesterday at New York Comic Con, things got weird. Daniel Radcliffe and Evan Rachel Wood took to the stage to promote the upcoming biopic Weird: The Al Yankovic in which Radcliffe plays “Weird Al” Yankovic, and Wood plays Madonna. Director and writer Eric Appel joined them, along with Weird Al himself appearing as a face on a digital screen dragged onstage. It was a bit weird, but who could expect otherwise?
Moderator Josh Horowitz asked how Weird Al advised the creation of the movie, to which the song-parodying legend sarcastically replied, “If you’re gonna tell my story, you’re gonna have to tell it 100% accurate.” To those who have yet to see the original Funny or Die sketch that inspired the movie, I recommend watching it. Appel, who created the sketch, shared that Weird Al initially said that it was a funny sketch and didn’t need to be anything more, but after it screened at concerts people would ask when the full movie was coming. Finally, in February 2019, Erik got an email from Weird Al that simply said, “It is time.”
So how did Weird find its Weird Al? Radcliffe explained that he knew Weird Al’s music beforehand. And yet he didn’t understand the request to play Weird Al, figuring that others resembled the singer much more. But when he read the ridiculous script he realized, “Oh, that doesn’t matter; that’s not what we’re doing.”
“We knew that he could pull off the dramatic moments and the comedic moments,” Weird Al said about Radcliffe’s casting. “It needed to be played like it was some Oscar-worthy biopic.”
And even Evan Rachel Wood got a surprise. “I don’t know how often you get an email offering the role of Madonna. And I did. And I immediately burst out laughing,” she explained, upon seeing it was a Weird Al movie.
The original sketch debuted on Funny or Die back in 2010, but Appel and Wierd Al, who co-wrote the film together, explained that the surge in musician biopics led to them turning the sketch into a full-length feature. And, of course, it wasn’t just the existence of biopics like 2018’s Bohemian Rhapsody or 2019’s Rocketman that made them want to make their own, but the fact that they found many aspects of them to parody. “They tend to play fast and loose with the facts,” Eric said, mentioning the tropes these films share such as having major events somehow occurring all in the same night.
Weird Al watched these films and got annoyed by the many historical inaccuracies. When watching them, he’d say to himself, “If I ever do a biopic I’m going to have to throw facts out the window.” And naturally, he has done just that.
But while the facts may be fake, some aspects of Weird prove real. Daniel Radcliffe learned to play the accordion for the film in order to lend some authenticity to the shots of him jamming on Weird Al’s signature instrument. Radcliffe explained that he has a friend who’s a professional accordion player who helped to teach him. Weird Al added that it was “a joy” to wake up and get a video from Radcliffe playing “My Bologna,” Weird Al’s parody of “My Sharona”by The Knack.
In fact, the Weird Al-style mustache that Radcliffe sports in the movie is also the actor’s own. “If you can avoid fake facial hair, you should. That’s advice for you all,” Radcliffe said, addressing the New York Comic Con crowd. That said, he did admit the one talent of his that isn’t really in the film. The panel showed an exclusive clip in which disc jockey Wolfman Jack, played by Jack Black, challenges Radcliffe’s Weird Al to parody Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust.” And of course, the parodist shoots back with “Another One Rides the Bus.” After sharing the ridiculous clip, Radcliffe revealed that the real Weird Al dubbed over all the singing, but that people still think it’s his voice. Reader, I was one of them.
The scene itself is also ridiculous, with various 80s celebrities appearing, played by other actors, such as Conan O’Brien as Andy Warhol. Radcliffe called the star-laden scene “a feat for hair, makeup, and costume [departments],” adding, “that clip was from the normal part of the movie.”
The film goes on to feature the fictional Madonna as Weird Al’s lover and muse. The nugget of truth behind it? The real Madonna actually did suggest that Weird Al parody “Like a Virgin” with the song “Like a Surgeon.” But of course, Weird takes this tidbit and makes it a whole subplot for the film.
Another fun fact is that Appel filmed the movie in just 18 days. Weird Al helped keep it moving, as he would show up on set frequently to give notes as soon as possible. And when Eric would see the singer laughing and smiling, he knew he had the “Weird Al seal of approval” and could move on. “I don’t know how this film was made in 18 days,” Radcliffe said, praising Appel, who admitted that the idea of a dating montage section did have to get cut for time.
And the cast and crew present at Comic Con said that they found the film has some sweetness among the absurdity. One moment late in the film, which the trailer features some of, has Weird Al giving a speech about accepting who you are. “It’s obviously not a message movie, but there is some subtext,” Weird Al himself said, explaining that the movie celebrates being different and being weird.
Weird: The Al Yankovic Story will arrive on The Roku Channel on November 4 of this year. And after that? Evan Rachel Wood hopes it becomes the next Rocky Horror Picture Show. “Midnight madness. It screens at midnight. People dress up.”
So get your Hawaiian shirts on, folks, and start practicing those accordions.
