By my count, Aziz Ansari’s “Good Fortune,” which is set to world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, holds the unofficial record for most test screenings of any film in 2025. At least seven of them — possibly more. That alone raises eyebrows, and the early word coming out of those screenings has been wildly mixed.
A new trailer dropped today, and I’ve got to say, my concerns have only deepened.
The film, a high-concept body-swapping comedy, stars Keanu Reeves as Gabriel, a “budget guardian angel” tasked with teaching a broke man (played by Ansari) that money isn’t everything. His solution? Swap the man’s life with that of his wealthy, clueless boss (Seth Rogen). Unsurprisingly, the plan backfires when the broke guy loves being rich, forcing the angel into Earth-bound demotion. Think “Big” meets “Trading Places” with a dash of “Scrooged,” all filtered through Ansari’s sensibility.
Shot in May 2023, the film’s production was delayed by the SAG-AFTRA strike and didn’t resume until early 2024. It’s Ansari’s follow-up to the ill-fated Being Mortal, which had its production shut down in 2022 following a complaint against Bill Murray. That film was never completed, so Good Fortune is effectively Ansari’s attempt at a career reset.
Keanu Reeves feels like a strange fit here. Based on what’s been shown so far, the role doesn’t seem to play to his strengths, and the comedic tone looks uneven. That’s a shame, considering the talent involved — Seth Rogen, Keke Palmer, Sandra Oh, and Reeves, on paper, make for an interesting ensemble.
Whether it all comes together remains to be seen. But after so many test screenings and a bumpy road to completion, it’s fair to wonder just how confident anyone is in this one.
Lionsgate is handling distribution, with “Good Fortune” rated R and scheduled to hit theaters on October 17, 2025.
The DGA and IATSE are two of the most powerful showbiz unions, and If this merger does go through, they will have absolutely played a role in helping make it happen.