Monday, 19 October 2026, 00:54
Jesse Eisenberg’s musical comedy “The Debut” closed the London <a href="https://cinemamix360.com/2026/10/19/boulder-braces-for-sundance-film-festival-as-passes-go-on-sale-and-homeowners-rush-to-host/" title="Boulder braces for Sundance Film Festival as passes go on sale and homeowners rush to host”>Film Festival on Sunday night, with Moore praising its screenplay and the chance to play its lead role.
Eisenberg and Moore introduced the film to a packed audience at the Royal Festival Hall. “I mean, this movie stars my favorite person, Julianne Moore,” Eisenberg said. He added that the story was also personal: “I set the story in 1990 in central New Jersey and in 1990 in central New Jersey I started doing community theater.”
Written and directed by Eisenberg, “The Debut” stars Moore as Mona Friedman, a shy New Jersey housewife who auditions for her local theater’s production of the fictional musical “Nosy Neighbors.” After landing the supporting role of Miss Danielle, Friedman becomes increasingly absorbed in the part, and her life begins to unravel. She also falls under the spell of the show’s director, Jerry Blankenbuehler, played by Paul Giamatti.
Eisenberg said he was “7 years old and miserable” when he began doing theater, but that the experience changed his life. “I wanted to write about that experience in my life, but I could only picture Julianne, to the point where I was writing it and she was inspiring me,” he said. “It’s the most thrilling experience to watch her and edit her for two years.”
Moore called the film an “incredible gift” and said it was “one of the best scripts I’ve ever read in my entire life.” “It was such an honor to receive it and such a thrill to go to work every day and to get to do this incredible part with these tremendous actors,” she said. Of Eisenberg, she added: “He’s a beautiful writer, exemplary director and just a great talent.”
Eisenberg replied: “I just want to note that the only time I’m called beautiful, it’s about writing.” He said Giamatti could not attend the UK premiere because he has COVID-19. “I wish he could be here. He is the greatest guy and you would love to hear him talk,” Eisenberg said. “Paul’s been my favorite actor since I’m young, Julianne’s been my favorite actress since I’m young.”
The cast also includes Halle Bailey, Colton Ryan and Bonnie Milligan as actors in the musical, alongside Eisenberg, Moore and Giamatti. Bernadette Peters, Lilli Cooper, Maulik Pancholy and Havana Rose Liu round out the cast.
Eisenberg described acting alongside his childhood heroes as “the thrill of a lifetime” but also “very strange.” “I was spending so much time enthralled with them, and then it was like Michael Jordan said, ‘Here, you take the ball!’ And I’m like, ‘What is this thing?’ So it was so distracting to me. I hope to never act alongside them again,” he joked. “I was my worst self.”
“The Debut” premiered at the Telluride Film Festival in September, earning rave reviews and Oscar buzz for Moore. In Variety’s review, chief film critic Owen Gleiberman called it “a small-town-theater comedy rooted in big ideas” and wrote: “‘The Debut,’ a small-town-theater comedy rooted in big ideas, is a funny and dizzying mind-bender. It’s like ‘Waiting for Guffman’ made by the Coen brothers at their most rivetingly unhinged.”
A24 is set to release “The Debut” in theaters on Dec. 11.
- Oscar-winning actor Julianne Moore will receive the Golden Icon Award at the Zurich Film Festival, honoring her career and latest leading role in Debut.
- The 60th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival opens July 3, honoring Oscar nominees Maggie Gyllenhaal and Jesse Eisenberg with awards, screenings, and premieres showcasing their move into auteur filmmaking.
