Looking again on Seth Rogen‘s earlier career, did anyone think he’d be a part of a forged of a Best Picture nominee like “The Fabelmans“? I mean, sure, yeah: Rogen’s proven repeatedly that he has the acting and writing chops to be taken seriously in the movie industry. For every forgettable comedy like “Observe And Report” (or raunchy one like “Pineapple Express“), Rogen has also been part of estimable, all-time classics, like his acting debut “Freaks And Geeks” or 2007’s “Superbad.”
But go away it to Rogen to throw down the gauntlet. The AV Club studies (by way of a brand new interview with People) that Rogen thinks “Superbad” is the apex of recent highschool films. And on prime of that, no different movie within the style launched since “Superbad” comes near it. In a narrative about his “Fabelmans” co-star, Rogen stated, “What’s crazy is that Gabe LaBelle is like, 19 years old, and his and his friends’ favorite movie is “Superbad.” So it by no means modified for some purpose.” Then comes Rogen’s daring assertion: “No one’s made a good high school movie since then.”
So let’s unpack that for a second: has there been any good highschool films since “Superbad”? Of course! Just to rattle off a couple of: “Lady Bird,” “Dope,” “Easy A” (which stars “Superbad” co-star Emma Stone), the “21 Jump Street” films (with “Superbad” co-star Jonah Hill), “The Edge Of Seventeen,” and, arguably, “The Bling Ring,” “Sing Street,” and “Submarine.” But do any of these seize the identical timeless appeal of dweeby, attractive adolescent dudes like “Superbad” does? Not fairly.
The highschool comedy with the closest resemblance to Rogen’s movie is undoubtedly Olivia Wilde‘s 2019 film “Booksmart,” which is basically “Superbad” for girls. But does being similar equate to being better or equal to? That’s one thing for followers to determine, however Rogen’s declare does present some meals for thought. Did the highschool film peak with “Superbad”? Maybe it did for a specific model of teenage boy, however there have been loads of different flavors of highschool comedies, starting from raunchy to not-so-raunchy, since that movie got here out.
But don’t count on Rogen to return to the “Superbad” effectively any time quickly, as he doubtless feels just like that film as he does about “Freak And Geeks.” As as to whether he’d ever be a part of a sequel to that short-lived however beloved sequence, Rogen stated, “I don’t think anyone would do it. It’s so rare that you do something in your career that is actually just viewed as good. I know enough now not to f*ck with that, to just let it be good and not try to go revisit it. And just let it exist.”
And so does “Superbad” exist because the obvious highest echelon of youngster comedy. So the query stays: will any future highschool film come to knock Rogen’s movie off that prestigious pedestal?