A24 has a new movie in the works, a disaster comedy set just before the year 2000. Everyone is getting ready to party like it’s 1999 in this Kyle Mooney-directed comedy titled Y2K. It’s an exciting prospect. A24 is coming right off the heels of their spectacular Oscar sweep with Everything Everywhere All at Once and The Whale winning a combined 13 Oscars. They are not the small indie production studio they used to be. Now with one foot secure in Hollywood and the other in the future of moviemaking, the studio is taking us back to the past with Y2K.
The film already has a cast, writer, and director even before it has an IMDb page – unless you count that Louis Gossett Jr. movie that was actually released in 1999. This new Y2K already has an astounding ensemble cast stacked with awards and memorable appearances. Evan Winter writes and produces alongside Matt Dines, Ali Goodwin, and Jonah Hill with his company Strong Baby and The Bear creator Christopher Storer with his banner, American Light & Fixture. The portents are looking good for a big disaster in the year 2000. Y2K will not be a film to miss.
Y2K: The Plot
Y2K is the story of “two high school nobodies that decide to crash the last big party before the new millennium. When the clock strikes midnight, the night gets more insane than they ever could have imagined.” As the movie description on Deadline reads, it sounds like it will be a spoof on the apocalyptic fears that many people had going into the new millennium. So if we could imply anything from the film’s logline, it might be a retro-futuristic party movie that unfolds as the world ends around the assembled characters. The film has already cast an excellent ensemble of rising stars to be in the movie, so one hopes they all get an equal amount of screen time.
Right now, only Kyle Mooney and Evan Winter know what type of disaster will befall our young heroes. In 1999, everyone thought something called the Y2K bug would shut down many military computers, causing thousands of nuclear missiles to launch without warning – which is what the plot of the 1999 film Y2K was about. Everyone was partying like there was no tomorrow because this doomsday theory, no matter how ridiculous it may have seemed looking back, would have caused everyone in every major city across the globe to be vaporized instantly. But the Nuclear holocaust is so last century. The filmmakers will undoubtedly come up with a more creative way to destroy the world.
Y2K: The Cast
Y2K will be directed by Kyle Mooney from Saturday Night Live. He's known for writing and acting on the show. Mooney has previous experience in comedy as well as directing and producing. He co-wrote and starred in the curious dramedy Brigsby Bear which premiered to critical acclaim at the Sundance film festival. He also worked on the massively popular series Nathan for You. He’ll be working alongside writer Evan Winter who is writing the film. Winter is known for his fantasy novels The Rage of Dragons and The Fires of Vengeance, the former of which was self-published and immediately made it onto TIME’s list of the 100 best fantasy books of all time. So perhaps the doom that comes to this retro-futuristic world will be long-sleeping dragons that awake on the millennium to burn the planet.
The film will star a slew of up-and-coming actors that comprise the movie’s ensemble cast. Jaeden Martell, who has appeared in Knives Out and St. Vincent. He received a Critic’s Choice Award nomination and has had a major role in Showtime’s Masters of Sex. He’s also starring alongside Nicolas Cage in the upcoming film Arcadian. Rachel Zegler starred as Maria in Steven Soderbergh’s West Side Story, which earned her a Golden Globe for Best Actress. You can currently see her in theaters starring in Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Julian Dennison is a familiar face from his role in Taika Waititi’s Hunt for the Wilderpeople. He also played the self-named mutant Firefist in Deadpool 2.
Lachlan Watson is known for their role in the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and for playing a significant role in the Chucky series. Mason Gooding recently appeared in Scream VI and had an earlier role in the TV show Love, Victor. The movie will also feature the Australian rapper and 5x Billboard Music Award winner, The Kid Laroi. In addition, Alicia Silverstone, who once played Batgirl in 1997’s Batman & Robin, will appear in the film. And Tim Heidecker of Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job and Us will play a part. And Jenna Ortega is in talks to join the cast as well.
Y2K: Release Date
No release date has been set for Y2K.