Daniel Radcliffe & Weird Al
Rami Malek got Freddie Mercury, Targon Egerton got Elton John, Austin Butler got Elvis, and now, Daniel Radcliffe gets...“Weird Al” Yankovic?
That’s right — the Harry Potter alum has been tapped to portray the accordian-playing and multi-Grammy-winning maestro of musical parody in an upcoming Roku Channel biopic co-produced by Funny or Die and Tango.
Production on the comedy film (officially titled WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story) is slated to kick off production in Los Angeles early next month with Eric Appel (known for helming episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and New Girl) in the director’s chair. Appel — who also serves as an executive producer alongside Funny or Die’s Henry Muñoz III and Tango's Neil Shah — co-wrote the screenplay with Yankovic.
“When my last movie UHF came out in 1989, I made a solemn vow to my fans that I would release a major motion picture every 33 years, like clockwork. I’m very happy to say we’re on schedule,” Yankovic (a producer on the biopic) said in a statement. “And I am absolutely thrilled that Daniel Radcliffe will be portraying me in the film. I have no doubt whatsoever that this is the role future generations will remember him for.”
“When ‘Weird Al’ first sat me down against my will and told me his life story, I didn’t believe any of it, but I knew that we had to make a movie about it,” added Appel.
The official synopsis promises that the movie will hold nothing back as it explores every corner of its subject’s life and career — “from his meteoric rise to fame with early hits like ‘Eat It’ and ‘Like a Surgeon’ to his torrid celebrity love affairs and famously depraved lifestyle. WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story takes audiences on a truly unbelievable journey through Yankovic’s life and career, from gifted child prodigy to the greatest musical legend of all time.”
The project represents Roku’s latest effort to beef up its catalogue of original streaming content that will bring in new viewers. Over the summer, for instance, the platform finalized a deal to purchase an entire library of programming from the now-defunct Quibi service.
Mike Farah, Joe Farrell, and Whitney Hodack are producing WEIRD on behalf of Funny or Die, while Tim Headington, Lia Buman, and Max Silva produce for Tango.
“There clearly aren't enough biopic movies about famous musicians and we were excited to shine a light on the incredibly true, unexaggerated story of ‘Weird Al’,” explained Colin Davis, Roku’s Head of Original Scripted Programming. “This is sincerely the ultimate combination of talent, creativity, and friends, coming together to make something genuinely funny and we could not be prouder to call this film a Roku Original.”
“I am excited that my first project as the owner of Funny Or Die Studios is to help bring the story of ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic to the screen. ‘Weird Al’ is a comic genius and his impact on pop culture, his mastery of the music video, his award-winning music and his incredible life are a perfect fit for the talented producers at FOD,” concluded Funny or Die Chairman and executive producer Henry Muñoz III. We are honored to partner with Roku, Tango and our director Eric Appel on this important movie. WEIRD has brought together a weird and wonderful team of creative people, to tell the story of a man who has made people laugh and sing across the world.”
Who knows? The film might actually be the lynchpin that finally convinces Paul McCartney to let Yankovic release his infamous parody of “Live and Let Die.”
