Everyone has their Search Party favorite, and mine remains John Early, a true triple threat—he sings, he acts, he tells jokes. Whether it’s his episode of Characters, stealing scenes on things like 30 Rock and Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, or dropping perfect line deliveries on Search Party like “Working feels bad and I don’t ever want to work one more day in my entire life”, John Early does it all. Last year, he released a special, Now More Than Ever, that is equal parts comedy, music, and performance art, and this year, he stars in Theda Hammel’s directorial debut, Stress Positions.
The film premiered at Sundance to mostly positive reviews, though the satirical bordering on mean approach to the early days of the 2020 COVID lockdowns drew some criticism (I don’t think we have a singular consensus of whether or not it’s okay to satirize the pandemic now).
Early stars as Terry Goon—great comedy name - a man quarantining in Brooklyn with his nephew, a nineteen-year-old male model from Morocco with a broken leg. I will watch John Early do literally anything, but that piece of physical comedy at the end of the trailer entirely sold me on Stress Positions. It would be one thing if Early just had good delivery and timing, but his physical comedy is deeply underrated. I don’t know that John Early will ever really court mainstream fame, but I am here for his indie comedy leading man moment. After years as a scene stealer and support player, John Early is finally getting his due as a superstar.
