That is a clickbaity headline, I admit it, so let me first say that the new Netflix movie, A Family Affair, starring Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron, and Joey King is not a sexual threesome, please don’t accuse me of depravity. But it IS a rom-com with three stars: the couple, played by Zac and Nicole, and Nicole’s daughter, played by Joey. And, for me, it’s Joey’s character, who is definitely NOT contributing any romance to this threesome, who makes it.
When the first images from A Family Affair were released a few weeks ago, I wrote that I wasn’t feeling the Nicole-Zac combination due to residual squick from the film they were in together several years ago, The Paperboy. Still not really feeling it here… but I’ll buy it because I don’t think A Family Affair is meant to be the kind of swoony, feel-it-in-your-stomach movie that The Idea of You is where, really, all the focus is on Anne Hathaway and all the romantic pleasure depends on her chemistry with Nicholas Galitzine. The Idea of You was funny, in parts, but it was weighted more heavily on romance than on comedy.
The way they’re selling A Family Affair, however, at least from this trailer, is definitely more comedy. Which is why we might not have to be all-in on Nicole and Zac and whether or not we’re hot for them. So far this is more about the LOL than the LOVE.
Joey’s face when she walks in on Nicole and Zac in bed is excellent, the way her eyes go in eight different directions right before she screams. And Zac’s follow-up… “name the movie I won a Teen Choice Award for” … it’s hysterical and perfect and I’m in. More in than I thought I would be!
Sarah’s email to me about this trailer was that this is “The Idea of You without the realism”. It is. But where it is, perhaps, more real is with Zac’s character. Hayes Campbell was the sensitive superstar boybander with depth and I’m not saying they don’t exist (I see you Harry Styles fans), but he was also written as a fantasy. The celebrity in A Family Affair is a movie star whose multitudes may be revealed over time but he’s also a spoiled narcissist who greets you with his IMDb page. That’s the realism in A Family Affair – and it does double the work because it comes with humour.
I love this for Zac Efron and where I was not a believer in him 15 years ago, I very much believe it now because these are good creative choices. He’s bounced out of The Iron Claw, the best dramatic performance of his career, into two comedies right away – Ricky Stanicky did not get great reviews and I don’t know how many people saw it but that’s not the point. The point is that Zac doesn’t seem to be leaning all the way into drama after the critical acclaim for The Iron Claw; in other words, not going full thirst into Oscar hunting, he’s not “too good” for comedy, he’s serious about whatever the work is, but not taking himself too seriously. Unlike, ahem, for example, his one-time idol Leonardo DiCaprio who… does Leo EVER do comedy? CAN Leo do comedy? This is a range flex for Zac, and it looks good. He hasn’t hosted Saturday Night Live for 15 years and in season 50, next September, Lorne Michaels should definitely bring him back.
In the meantime, I haven’t looked forward to a Zac Efron movie as much as I’m looking forward to A Family Affair.